Provenance
Leo Castelli Gallery, New York
Mr. and Mrs. Burton Tremaine, Meridian, Connecticut
Their sale, Christie's, New York, November 9, 1988, lot 10
Private Collection (acquired at the above sale)
Christie's, New York, November 15, 2006, lot 33
Private Collection, New York
Acquired from the above by the present owner
Exhibited
New York, Leo Castelli Gallery, Roy Lichtenstein: Brushstrokes and Ceramics, November 20 – December 11, 1965
New York, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Roy Lichtenstein, September 19 - November 16, 1969, no. 103
Long Beach, California State University Art Galleries, Roy Lichtenstein: Ceramic Sculpture, February 22 - March 20, 1977, no. 13
Hartford, The Wadsworth Atheneum, The Tremaine Collection: 20th Century Masters, The Spirit of Modernism, February 26 - April 29, 1984, p. 100 (illustrated)
Art Institute of Chicago; Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art; London, Tate Modern; Paris, Centre Georges Pompidou, Roy Lichtenstein: A Retrospective, May 16, 2012 - November 4, 2013, no. 27 (Chicago and London) and no. 90 (Paris) (illustrated)
Literature
John Coplans, Roy Lichtenstein, New York, 1972, no. 51, p. 122 (illustrated)
Constance W. Glenn, Roy Lichtenstein: Ceramic Sculptures, 1977, pl. 13, p. 16 (installation view illustrated)
Peter Aspden, "Beneath the Surface", Financial Times, January 26 - 27, 2013, p. 17 (illustrated)
Catalogue Essay
“It becomes a very exaggerated, a very compelling symbol that has almost nothing to do with the original” -Roy Lichtenstein on the coffee cup

In a glossy black and white finish, Roy Lichtenstein’s coffee cups and saucers are a paradigm of the artist’s characteristic pop iconography of the 1960s, which feels ever more relevant in contemporary culture. Composed of the artist’s quintessential Benday dots, the coffee cups are stacked atop each other in a teetering tower, as if left on the counter in haste. First exhibited alongside the artist’s large-scale brushstroke paintings and other ceramic sculptures at Leo Castelli Gallery in his 1965 solo show, Ceramic Sculpture #7 stands out as a reminder of the pop artist’s interest, and in turn influence on, artistic re-appropriations of the most mundane objects from our everyday lives.

Known for his mastery of two and three-dimensional practices, Lichtenstein first began experimenting with sculpture in the 1940s and 50s, originally with more natural materials such as wood and terracotta. His style further developed in the 1960s when he started producing glazed ceramics, a surface which better allowed him to paint the graphic imagery for which he is most well-known. The repetitive nature of the dots and lines in the present lot attempt to reduce the three-dimensional objects to two-dimensional form, breaking down the sculpture into its pure graphic elements. These designs in black and white, however, distinguish this work amongst his other ceramic sculptures produced at this time, lacking the blue and red that the others feature. It is this quality that makes the monochromatic Ceramic Sculpture #7 a stronger indication of Lichtenstein’s inspiration that directly recalls the artist’s interest in newspaper advertisements, with the tower of mugs reminding the viewer of a black and white ad from the Sunday paper. In this way, Lichtenstein connects with the American consumer on an even more direct level, overtly challenging this notion of pop art—the mundane can be celebrated in the simplest of forms, and further, can be elevated to the highest form of art.

In its painterly qualities, Lichtenstein’s Ceramic Sculpture #7 reminds coffee drinkers that these cups intentionally lack functionality. “I don’t care what, say, a cup of coffee looks like,” Lichtenstein stated. “I only care about how it’s drawn.” (Roy Lichtenstein quoted in Jack Cowart, ed., Roy Lichtenstein: Beginning to End, exh. cat., Fundación Juan March, Madrid, 2007, pp. 118-19) Thus, in typical pop art fashion, the artist plays with a recognizable symbol and in turn challenges the viewer’s expectations and interpretations. Ceramic Sculpture #7 brings to mind something familiar, while also declaring that art can be found in all sorts of places, even the local diner.

14

Roy Lichtenstein

Ceramic Sculpture #7

signed and dated "rf Lichtenstein 1965" on the underside
painted and glazed ceramic
9 1/2 x 7 x 7 in. (24.1 x 17.8 x 17.8 cm.)
Executed in 1965, this work is unique.

Estimate
$400,000 - 600,000

Sold for $394,000

Contact Specialist
Kate Bryan
Head of Evening Sale
New York
+ 1 212 940 1267

20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale

New York Auction 16 November 5 PM EST

1
Carmen Herrera
Cerulean
Estimate $600,000 - 800,000
Sold for $970,000
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2
Mark Grotjahn
Untitled (Crimson Red and Canary Yellow Butterfly 45.93)
Estimate $600,000 - 800,000
Sold for $1,450,000
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3
Wade Guyton
Untitled
Estimate $1,200,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for $1,990,000
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4
Henry Taylor
He's Hear, and He's Thair
Estimate $40,000 - 60,000
Sold for $60,000
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5
Michaël Borremans
Sweet Disposition
Estimate $500,000 - 700,000
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6
Vija Celmins
Untitled
Estimate $1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for $2,890,000
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7
Gerhard Richter
Dϋsenjäger
Estimate $25,000,000 - 35,000,000
Sold for $25,565,000
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8
Kazuo Shiraga
T40
Estimate $1,200,000 - 1,800,000
Sold for $1,450,000
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9
Clyfford Still
Untitled
Estimate $12,000,000 - 18,000,000
Sold for $13,690,000
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10
Gerhard Richter
Abstraktes Bild (720-2)
Estimate $5,000,000 - 7,000,000
Sold for $6,410,000
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11
Sigmar Polke
Untitled
Estimate $1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for $1,150,000
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12
David Hockney
The Gate
Estimate $6,000,000 - 8,000,000
Sold for $6,970,000
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13
Alexander Calder
Two Horizontals and Nine Verticals
Estimate $1,800,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for $2,050,000
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14
Roy Lichtenstein
Ceramic Sculpture #7
Estimate $400,000 - 600,000
Sold for $394,000
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15
Roy Lichtenstein
Nudes in Mirror
Estimate On Request
Sold for $21,530,000
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16
Jean Dubuffet
Corps de dame, la rose incarnate
Estimate $2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for $2,290,000
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17
Aristide Maillol
Baigneuse accroupie (Crouching woman)
Estimate $100,000 - 150,000
Sold for $162,500
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18
Jeff Koons
Italian Woman
Estimate $3,000,000 - 5,000,000
Sold for $3,610,000
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19No Reserve
Donald Judd
Untitled (Menziken 88-16)
Estimate $2,000,000 - 3,000,000 •
Sold for $2,410,000
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20
Yayoi Kusama
Infinity Nets (OZEH)
Estimate $1,500,000 - 2,000,000
Sold for $1,810,000
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21
Mira Schendel
Sem titulo (XII)
Estimate $800,000 - 1,200,000
Sold for $970,000
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22
Andy Warhol
Cowboys and Indians
Estimate $250,000 - 350,000
Sold for $394,000
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23
Keith Haring
Snake and Man; Dogs and Men
Estimate $700,000 - 1,000,000
Sold for $1,102,000
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24
Jean-Michel Basquiat
Untitled (Devil's head)
Estimate $3,000,000 - 5,000,000
Sold for $3,610,000
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25
Jean Dubuffet
Le Gommeux
Estimate $700,000 - 1,000,000
Sold for $760,000
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26
Damien Hirst
Disintegration - The Crown of Life
Estimate $1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Sold for $1,150,000
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27
George Condo
Noble Woman
Estimate $500,000 - 700,000
Sold for $1,006,000
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28
Richard Prince
I Went to the Doctor
Estimate $2,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sold for $1,570,000
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29
Ed Ruscha
Peas, Asparagus
Estimate $600,000 - 800,000
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30
Joan Mitchell
Untitled
Estimate $300,000 - 500,000
Sold for $370,000
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31
Morris Louis
Tzadik
Estimate $1,500,000 - 2,500,000
Sold for $1,630,000
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32
Joe Bradley
Frankenstein
Estimate $500,000 - 700,000
Sold for $346,000
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33
Dan Flavin
untitled (for Leo Castelli at his gallery’s 30th anniversary) 3
Estimate $200,000 - 300,000
Sold for $322,000
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34
Jean Dubuffet
Femme aux Vêtements Laineux
Estimate $180,000 - 250,000
Sold for $274,000
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35
Francis Picabia
Untitled (Femme nue)
Estimate $200,000 - 300,000
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36
Alexander Archipenko
Statue on Triangular Base
Estimate $350,000 - 450,000
Sold for $394,000
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37
Sigmar Polke
Untitled (Silver Painting)
Estimate $500,000 - 700,000
Sold for $490,000
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20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale

New York Auction 16 November 5 PM EST

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Provenance

Exhibited

Literature

Catalogue Essay

14

Roy Lichtenstein

Ceramic Sculpture #7

20th Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale

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