Provenance
Galerie Max Hetzler, Berlin
Catalogue Essay
At the beginning of the 1980s, both critics and artists were questioning the viability of painting and the importance of the artist’s hand in the making process. At the same time, Christopher Wool returned to painting and the influence of this public dialogue about painting cannot be overestimated when looking at his work, as it influenced him in formulating the principles of his own work – process and physicality took precedence over content and representation. Growing up within the prolific art scene of New York, Wool has been influenced by – amongst others – Pop artists such as Richard Hamilton and Andy Warhol, Minimalism, and the likes of Richard Serra and Yves Klein. But he was especially affected by contemporaries including Cady Noland, Martin Kippenberger and Albert Oehlen, and their attitude of hailing “the productivity of failure, claiming that the discrediting of painting’s effective capacity has opened yet another discursive field.” (F. Petzel, Psycho-sludge, Columbus: Wexner Center for the Arts, 1995).

In the mid-80s, after a phase of semi-figurative works, Wool moved to making all-over ‘drip’ paintings, closely referencing Jackson Pollock. Using a limited palette, he worked the surface with drips and loose brushstrokes, always keeping the physicality of the medium and the process a priority. At the end of the 1980s he adapted these drip paintings to the type of works represented by the beautiful example shown here. In these, Wool uses rubber rollers to apply decorative patterns – reminiscent of wallpaper, and made out of a single motif – over and over again until the entire background is filled. Through this strategy, Wool further forgoes the basics of painting by eliminating the concepts of space, focus points and any idea of beginning and end. The viewer’s eyes are obliged to race over the work’s surface, without finding a place to settle. Such pieces continue to be ‘all-over’, but unlike the drip paintings, they have a clear and structured pattern which eliminates the traditional background–foreground relationship. “The repetitive patterns of these works are articulated by layering, skips in register, drips and scumbles… The imperfections imbue these works with fragility, as the seemingly empty decorative patterns are rendered imperfect, and thus vulnerable… Through process, technique, scale, composition, and imagery, Wool’s work accentuates the tensions and contradictions between the act of painting, the construction of a picture, its physical attributes, the visual experience of looking at it, and the possibilities of playing with and pushing open the thresholds of its meanings. They are defined by what they’re not – and by what they hold back.”

(Ann Goldstein, ‘What They’re Not: The Paintings of Christopher Wool’, in Christopher Wool, exh. cat., San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, 1998)

4

Christopher Wool

Untitled

1988
Alkyd on paper.
127 × 97 cm (50 × 38 1/4 in).
Signed and dated ‘Wool 1988’ on the reverse.

Estimate
£120,000 - 180,000

Sold for £169,250

Contemporary Art Evening Sale

16 February 2012
London

1
This lot is no longer available.
2
Joe Bradley
Killroy
Estimate £30,000 - 40,000
Sold for £49,250
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3
Kelley Walker
Untitled
Estimate £50,000 - 70,000
Sold for £85,250
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4
Christopher Wool
Untitled
Estimate £120,000 - 180,000
Sold for £169,250
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5
Rudolf Stingel
Untitled
Estimate £450,000 - 650,000 ‡♠
Sold for £505,250
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6
Marc Quinn
The Golden Column (Microcosmos)
Estimate £300,000 - 500,000 ‡♠
Sold for £289,250
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7
Cindy Sherman
Untitled #410
Estimate £200,000 - 300,000 ‡
Sold for £433,250
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8
Ugo Rondinone
VIERZEHNTEROKTOBERZWEITAUSENDUNDNULL
Estimate £120,000 - 180,000
Sold for £157,250
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9
Takashi Murakami
Troll’s Umbrella
Estimate £200,000 - 300,000 ‡
Sold for £385,250
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10
Thomas Schütte
Gelber Hund
Estimate £250,000 - 350,000 ♠
Sold for £241,250
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11
Isa Genzken
Dubai
Estimate £60,000 - 80,000 ♠
Sold for £61,250
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12
Andy Warhol
Mao
Estimate £300,000 - 500,000 ‡
Sold for £457,250
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13
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14
George Condo
Woman in Blue Chair
Estimate £200,000 - 300,000 ‡
Sold for £205,250
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15
Damien Hirst
Wretched War
Estimate £200,000 - 300,000 Ω♠
Sold for £325,250
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16
Andreas Gursky
Jumeirah Palm
Estimate £400,000 - 600,000 ♠
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17
Lucio Fontana
Concetto spaziale, Attese
Estimate £1,000,000 - 1,500,000 ‡♠
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18
Roni Horn
When Dickinson Shut Her Eyes, no. 1259
Estimate £100,000 - 150,000
Sold for £121,250
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19
Richard Prince
My Funny Valentine
Estimate £150,000 - 200,000
Sold for £181,250
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20
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Untitled (HALF-EATEN)
Estimate £150,000 - 200,000
Sold for £181,250
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21
Ahmed Alsoudani
Untitled
Estimate £200,000 - 300,000 ‡
Sold for £229,250
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22
Walead Beshty
FedEx® Kraft Box© 2005: FedEx Standard Overnight Los Angeles–New York, trk# 8675 2590 1103; FedEx Standard Overnight New York–Washington, trk# 8631 3319 4523, date April 13–14 2009; FedEx Standard Overnight Washington–Miami, trk# 7950 0886 1541, date July 26–27 2011; International Priority Miami–London, trk # 8439 1188 5383, date January 11–13, 2012
Estimate £15,000 - 20,000 ‡♠
Sold for £58,850
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23
John Armleder
Alchemilla Vulgaris
Estimate £40,000 - 60,000 ‡
Sold for £55,250
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24
Damien Hirst
Sensation
Estimate £350,000 - 450,000 ‡♠
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25
Alex Katz
Ada on Green
Estimate £150,000 - 250,000
Sold for £229,250
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26
Olafur Eliasson
The Path Series
Estimate £50,000 - 70,000 ‡♠
Sold for £68,450
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27
Raymond Pettibon
Untitled (The view from beyond the breakers)
Estimate £80,000 - 120,000
Sold for £157,250
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Contemporary Art Evening Sale

16 February 2012 London

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Provenance

Catalogue Essay

4

Christopher Wool

Untitled

Contemporary Art Evening Sale

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16 February 2012
London