Pop Art Variations: Modern Meets Contemporary With Robinhood Auctions

The latest sale from Robinhood Auctions offers over 1,000 lots of original paintings, prints, multiples, and more. The catalog boasts a robust selection of Pop Art, with examples from Modern masters such as Andy Warhol and Peter Max alongside contemporary reinventions from Patricia Govezensky and Mr. Brainwash. 

Here are some of the top Modern and contemporary Pop Art pieces that will be available on November 21, 2024. 

Andy Warhol

Several lots from Pop Art master Andy Warhol will cross the auction block in this sale, including a suite of ten Marilyn Monroe screenprints (lot #787; estimate: USD 6,684 – $8,355). The prints were published by Sunday B. Morning and are accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. 

Warhol’s collaboration with Belgian company Sunday B. Morning started pleasantly. In 1970, he sent the anonymous printmakers behind Sunday B. Morning photo negatives and specific printing instructions to mass produce Warhol’s images of Marilyn Monroe, flowers, and Campbell’s Soup cans. Yet the relationship soon soured. Warhol eventually looked down upon the company’s output, viewing it as unironically inauthentic. Sunday B. Morning prints are recognizable for a blue stamp on verso that reads “fill in your own signature,” a cheeky invitation to take ownership of a mass-produced product. 

Peter Max

Another Pop Art icon with work in the catalog is Peter Max. A German-American painter, Max is known for his colorful paintings that embrace psychedelic images and unrestrained joy. He rose to fame in the late 1950s and early 60s after an early start in graphic design. Max applied the principles of design and marketing to his fine art, especially when he turned to printmaking. 

Max’s Liberty & Justice, a mixed media artwork, is one notable item (lot #182; estimate: $6,252 – $7,815). It belongs to a series of patriotic paintings that Max executed in the aftermath of September 11, 2001. The work depicts the Statue of Liberty repeated across 12 boxes. In the background of each is a unique combination of colors and textures. 

Patricia Govezensky 

Patricia Govezensky’s Contemporary Love will be available as well (lot #629; estimate: $10,080 – $12,600). The Israeli artist is best known for her colorful depictions of women, often portrayed relaxing in coffee shops. In this work, Govezensky turns her brush to Robert Indiana’s classic Love image, itself an icon of the Pop Art movement. Govezensky’s interpretation mirrors Indiana’s font and arrangement of letters before taking the coloring further. Instead of solid-colored type, she has covered the cutout steel letters with swirling, striped paint. The colors, textures, and movement of the piece lend movement to this classic image. 

Mr. Brainwash 

Another contemporary artist whose work revisits and revises Pop Art is Mr. Brainwash. Thierry Guetta– who is known professionally as Mr. Brainwash– is a Los Angeles-based street artist whose work embraces Pop Art inspirations. He frequently references work by Andy Warhol and others while riffing on the style of contemporaries such as Banksy and Shepard Fairey. 

Available from Mr. Brainwash in Robinhood Auctions’ upcoming event is Tomato Pop (Pink), a limited edition hand-finished silkscreen (lot #679; estimate: $4,176 – $5,220). At first glance, this piece bears a striking resemblance to Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup cans. However, closer inspection reveals minor variations. “Brainwash” replaces “Campbell’s” in white cursive letters, while “Art” is substituted for “Soup” at the can’s bottom. Instead of a neatly sealed top, this can bristles with paint-daubed brushes of every shape and size. 

Robinhood Auctions’ Contemporary and Classic Masterpieces auction will begin at 1:00 PM EST on November 21, 2024. To find more information about each of these works and to register to bid, visit Bidsquare. 

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