Provenance
David Zwirner, New York
Zwirner & Wirth, New York
Catalogue Essay
“ I’m not interested in provoking people, but only in trying to be consoling.”
MARTIN KIPPENBERGER

Martin Kippenberger’s relatively brief yet thunderous career forged a pathway unprecedented in the realm of eastern European art. Kippenberger’s intent to avoid stylistic simplification not only succeeded, but it made his work unequaled in diversity of medium, message, and complexity. While Gerhard Richter may have laid claim to the aesthetic throne of German contemporary art, Kippenberger’s ambitions were never for dominion or beauty; his position as the most prominent member of a German enfants terrible gave birth to sculptures and paintings loaded with both political and compositional innovation. Yet, Kippenberger’s work can just as easily eschew the tangle of contemporary politics and stand on its own, exemplied in the present lot, Leiden Warum, Leiden Wozu (Suffer Why, Suffer What For), 1982. Here, Kippenberger’s commentary on the nature of creation resounds with the propinquity of life and vigor.

Covered in blocks of oil paint, Kippenberger’s surface is a pastiche of many influences without being indebted to any singular style. Though his huge swath of crimson bordering black and white may suggest Color Field painting or perhaps the Neo-Plasticism of Mondrian, any effort to categorize Kippenberger would be, of course, in vain. His greatest achievement in the present lot is suggested by the painting’s title, scrawled across its surface in red, blue-green, black and white. Suffer Why, Suffer What For conjures the malaise of the creative artist and the sense of masochism compounded by the pressure of creative production. Yet Kippenberger produces the art and act of suffering in conjuring it this lamentable subject.

Kippenberger’s early death and rapid rise to international recognition makes him one of the art world’s most tragic losses. Certainly, his many retrospectives, including those at Tate Modern and Los Angeles’ Museum of Contemporary Art, cement the importance of his vast and unyielding influence upon contemporary art. Leiden Warum, Leiden Wozu (Suffer Why, Suffer What For), 1982, stands as a crucial testament to his modus operandi, one where the strife of creation is as integral as the artwork itself.

18

Martin Kippenberger

Leiden Warum, Leiden Wozu (Suffer Why, Suffer What For)

1982
oil on canvas
47 x 39 in. (119.4 x 99.1 cm)

Estimate
$350,000 - 450,000

Contemporary Art & Design Evening Sale

7 March 2013
New York

1
Ryan Sullivan
June 18, 2009 - January 20, 2010
Estimate $40,000 - 60,000
Sold for $60,000
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2
Dan Colen
Oy Vey 3
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
Sold for $164,500
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3
Glenn Ligon
Silver Just Us #5
Estimate $200,000 - 300,000
Sold for $242,500
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4
Johnny Swing
“Half Dollar / Butterfly” chair
Estimate $40,000 - 60,000
Sold for $67,300
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5
Kelley Walker
Untitled
Estimate $50,000 - 70,000
Sold for $110,500
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6
This lot is no longer available.
7
Rob Pruitt
I Love Bamboo (I hate you)
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
Sold for $98,500
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8
Wendell Castle
Black Edition “Big Table,” from the “Molar” series
Estimate $60,000 - 80,000
Sold for $74,500
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9
Mark Grotjahn
Butterfly (Black, Red, Orange)
Estimate $200,000 - 300,000
Sold for $254,500
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10
Ettore Sottsass, Jr.
“Menta” totem
Estimate $20,000 - 25,000
Sold for $25,000
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11
Damien Hirst
Levorphanol
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
Sold for $218,500
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12
Cecily Brown
S.A.P.
Estimate $800,000 - 1,200,000
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13
Albert Oehlen
Traurigkeit
Estimate $300,000 - 500,000
Sold for $362,500
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14
Andy Warhol
Knives
Estimate $2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for $2,008,900
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15
Ed Ruscha
Anchor Stuck in Sand
Estimate $600,000 - 800,000
Sold for $550,000
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16
Sigmar Polke
Untitled
Estimate $400,000 - 600,000
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17
Gerhard Richter
Fuji (839-12)
Estimate $200,000 - 300,000
Sold for $215,000
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18
Martin Kippenberger
Leiden Warum, Leiden Wozu (Suffer Why, Suffer What For)
Estimate $350,000 - 450,000
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19
Jacob Kassay
Untitled
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
Sold for $188,500
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20
Ron Arad
“Oh-Void 2” chair
Estimate $120,000 - 180,000
Sold for $122,500
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21
Richard Prince
Untitled (Massage)
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
Sold for $146,500
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22
George Condo
The Monk at the Brothel
Estimate $200,000 - 300,000
Sold for $266,500
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23
Maurizio Cattelan
A Perfect Day
Estimate $150,000 - 200,000
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24
Gilbert & George
Wheel
Estimate $70,000 - 90,000
Sold for $104,500
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25
Louise Lawler
Going
Estimate $50,000 - 70,000
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26
Jim Hodges
The Good News, Ta Nea, 3/20/2007 (Athens Greece) 3/20/2007
Estimate $30,000 - 40,000
Sold for $30,000
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27
Ken Price
Oh Gee
Estimate $150,000 - 200,000
Sold for $314,500
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28
Sylvie Fleury
Eternal Wow on Shelf (cyan/purple)
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
Sold for $80,500
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29
This lot is no longer available.
30
Tom Friedman
Inside Out
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
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31
Anselm Reyle
Untitled
Estimate $50,000 - 70,000
Sold for $98,500
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32
T.V. Santhosh
Enemies' Enemy II
Estimate $150,000 - 250,000
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33
Eric Fischl
The Cattle Auction (A Study)
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
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34
Thomas Houseago
Untitled (Coin Mask I)
Estimate $40,000 - 60,000
Sold for $74,500
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35
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Untitled (3 Text Pieces)
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
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36
Richard Prince
Eden Rock (oil rig and cowboy)
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
Sold for $200,500
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37
Francesco Clemente
Zip
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
Sold for $68,500
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38
Karel Appel
Personage
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
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39
Ahmed Alsoudani
You No Longer Have Hands
Estimate $150,000 - 250,000
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40
Elliott Hundley
Garland
Estimate $40,000 - 60,000
Sold for $104,500
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41
Os Gêmeos
Landscape
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
Sold for $134,500
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42
Studio Job
“Perished” table
Estimate $50,000 - 70,000
Sold for $68,500
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Contemporary Art & Design Evening Sale

7 March 2013 New York

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Provenance

Catalogue Essay

18

Martin Kippenberger

Leiden Warum, Leiden Wozu (Suffer Why, Suffer What For)

Contemporary Art & Design Evening Sale

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7 March 2013
New York