Peter Hujar’s photographs are primary documents of New York subculture in the 1970s and ‘80s. Working with the sensitivity and insight of an insider, Hujar photographed the creative figures that formed his circle, from Susan Sontag and Candy Darling to Larry Ree and, as seen here, David Wojnarowicz; showing them in moments of joy, pain and reflection.
Of all his subjects, Wojnarowicz was one of the most present throughout his work. Hujar and Wojnarowicz met in the early 1980s and a brief romance transformed into a friendship that lasted until Hujar’s death from AIDS in 1987. Indeed, as the AIDS epidemic ravaged the gay community, Hujar’s portraits have come to represent a lost generation.
The Village Voice, 28 June 1983 This portrait of the artist appeared on the cover of The Village Voice on 28 June 1983 alongside an article by Richard Goldstein, ‘Heartsick: Fear and Loving in the Gay Community.’ From a personal vantage point, the article addressed the devastation and uncertainty as the virus was spreading throughout New York City, with Hujar’s image poignantly symbolizing the burden of fear and isolation that had descended upon the gay community.
Provenance
Fraenkel Gallery, San Francisco, 2015
Literature
Cleveland Museum of Art, Catalogue of Photography, p. 329
Smith, Gefter, and Turtell, Peter Hujar: Speed of Life, p. 243
The Village Voice, 28 June 1983, cover
302
David Wojnarowicz (Village Voice "Heartsick: Fear and Loving in the Gay Community")
1983
Gelatin silver print.
10 1/8 x 10 in. (25.7 x 25.4 cm)
'Printed by the Artist' and estate copyright credit reproduction limitation stamps, additionally signed, titled, and dated by Stephen Koch, Executor, in pencil on the verso.
Estimate
$30,000 - 50,000
Sold for $139,700
Sarah Krueger
Head of Department, Photographs
skrueger@phillips.com
Vanessa Hallett
Worldwide Head of Photographs and Chairwoman, Americas
vhallett@phillips.com
Photographs
New York Auction 9 October 2024
325
This lot is no longer available.
354
This lot is no longer available.
