Provenance
Gagosian Gallery, New York
Exhibited
St. Barths, Eden Rock Hotel Gallery, Richard Prince, December 27, 2007- February 28, 2008
Catalogue Essay
Debuting at the Eden Rock Hotel Gallery in the Caribbean island of St. Barths, Richard Prince’s triumphant Eden Rock (oil rig and cowboy), 2006, is part of a series inspired by the Darwinian theory of survival of the fittest. Here, the backdrop of an oil rig sets the tone for a show-down between two cowboys, Prince’s most beloved masculine subject matter. The series is essentially a story board for an original screen play by Richard Prince entitled Eden Rock, a combination of Nevil Shute’s post-apocalyptic novel On the Beach and William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. The plot of this screen play is described as a survivalist tale, based on events gone wrong and ill-fated circumstances. Prince is quoted as being intrigued by “the idea of privilege turned on its head” and “when it comes to the fight for survival, clean water becomes more important than money.” (F. Martin, “Picture the End of the World”, The Guardian, March 25, 2008). These comments aptly describe the events transpiring before us, echoing the isembodied voices heard in movie trailers; behind one cowboy we find an oil rig spewing fire, behind the other, we find a flower. Within this mise-en-scene, a confrontation of opposing forces is about to explode, each protectively positioned before disparate symbols of wealth and nature.

Playing with perception, the viewer’s perspective begins directly behind a pair of anonymous legs, clothed in military fatigues and worn leather cowboy boots. As the figure in the foreground stands in alignment with the oil rig, his blurred counterpart, another anonymous cowboy in full regalia, brandishes his whip while all but vanishing under a veil of expressive white brushstrokes. This broad treatment of the composition creates a sense of desolation, enveloping all but one natural element. While alluding to his Cowboys series, Eden Rock (oil rig and cowboy), 2006, simultaneously underscores a contemporary version of the hyper-masculine figure through the combination of spaghetti western and Die Hard-esque mise-en-scene. Unlike Prince’s Nurses, Cowboys, and Girlfriends, whose full figures and faces fill their respective compositions, the works of Eden Rock are void of the figure’s identity, allowing the viewer to project themselves into the dramatic tableaux.
Artist Biography
Richard Prince
American • 1947
For more than three decades, Prince's universally celebrated practice has pursued the subversive strategy of appropriating commonplace imagery and themes – such as photographs of quintessential Western cowboys and "biker chicks," the front covers of nurse romance novellas, and jokes and cartoons – to deconstruct singular notions of authorship, authenticity and identity.
Starting his career as a member of the Pictures Generation in the 1970s alongside such contemporaries as Cindy Sherman, Robert Longo and Sherrie Levine, Prince is widely acknowledged as having expanded the accepted parameters of art-making with his so-called "re-photography" technique – a revolutionary appropriation strategy of photographing pre-existing images from magazine ads and presenting them as his own. Prince's practice of appropriating familiar subject matter exposes the inner mechanics of desire and power pervading the media and our cultural consciousness at large, particularly as they relate to identity and gender constructs.
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36

Richard Prince

Eden Rock (oil rig and cowboy)

2006
acrylic on canvas
22 3/4 x 30 in (57.8 x 76.2 cm)
Signed and dated "R. Prince 2006" on the reverse.

Estimate
$100,000 - 150,000

Sold for $200,500

Contemporary Art & Design Evening Sale

7 March 2013
New York

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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
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9
Mark Grotjahn
Butterfly (Black, Red, Orange)
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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
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16
Sigmar Polke
Untitled
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17
Gerhard Richter
Fuji (839-12)
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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
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25
Louise Lawler
Going
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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
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27
Ken Price
Oh Gee
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Sold for $314,500
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28
Sylvie Fleury
Eternal Wow on Shelf (cyan/purple)
Estimate $80,000 - 120,000
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29
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30
Tom Friedman
Inside Out
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
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31
Anselm Reyle
Untitled
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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)
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34
Thomas Houseago
Untitled (Coin Mask I)
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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
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Sold for $68,500
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38
Karel Appel
Personage
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39
Ahmed Alsoudani
You No Longer Have Hands
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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

Exhibited

Catalogue Essay

Artist Biography

Richard Prince

36

Richard Prince

Eden Rock (oil rig and cowboy)

Contemporary Art & Design Evening Sale

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7 March 2013
New York