The Mystery of Marilyn Monroe: The Unheard Tapes
The elegantly shot documentary by Director Emma Cooper draws from extensive material focusing on those who knew the star and is joined by investigative journalist Anthony Summers as he recounts the important points of his 1985 book Goddess: The Secret Lives of Marilyn Monroe. “This is the last film about Marilyn Monroe exclusively populated by people who knew her, touched her life, felt her presence, really knew what it was like to be around her,” she says. The 1h 41m documentary ebbs on the side of caution and does go over many aspects of the star that are now known by many and episodes of her life that have become part of the pop-culture lexicon. However, on watching the film we very much can see that she is a star very much of our own age. One can not help to sense that whilst the, presumably well-intentioned, film fails to uncover new ground we are left with an almost dehumanised portrait of the star. Befitting of Warhol’s famous work and his uncanny ability to seemingly predict the zeitgeist, we see Monroe as a precursor to the struggles that are very much of our age - mental health, addiction, divorce and relationships - timeless stories that endlessly repeat across the ages.
Indeed, it is hard not to think of Warhol without the image of Marilyn appearing in the mind’s eye. After all, along with Campbell's Soup Cans, the image of Marilyn is best associated with the artist - perhaps even mutually cementing both of their legacies and continued interest. Both examples of commercialisation, of fame and celebrity, are both inherently linked to the birth of pop-art, youth culture and concepts and questions of what fame and celebrity are.
Stepping out of the silver screen we move to the exciting upcoming auction at Christie’s where an iconic painting of the star is being auctioned from the collection of the Thomas and Doris Ammann Foundation. With all proceeds going to charity, the work carries the highest pre-auction estimate ever. Often used as the barometer for the art market, in 2021, Warhol generated $347.6 million at auction, according to the Artnet Price Database, down 34 percent from the peak in 2015. (Meanwhile, Warhol’s protégé, Jean-Michel Basquiat, accounted for $439.6 million in sales, second only to Pablo Picasso.) Warhol’s auction record hasn’t been challenged since 2013m when Silver car crash (Double disaster) (in 2 parts) (1963) fetched $105 million at Sotheby’s.
Warhol first painted Marilyn in 1962 and returned to his famous and tragic muse twice more over the course of his career. The larger and more detailed format that he created in 1964 is considered the most desirable subset of the subject, which itself is the most desirable in Warhol’s oeuvre. The Marilyn Monroe portfolio is consdiered to be one of the artist's finest series.
Shot Sage Blue Marilyn is one in a series of five paintings that also includes versions in red, orange, and turquoise. Their title comes from an incident when performance artist Dorothy Podber shot the four stacked canvases with a revolver. The other four paintings have sold thusly:
- The Blue was purchased by Peter Brant for $5,000 in 1967.
- The Red was bought by Philip Niarchos for $4.1 million
- The Orange was bought for $17.3 million in 1998 then sold to Kenneth C. Griffin for a rumoured $200+ million
- The Turquoise was bought by Steve Cohen (businessman) for a rumoured $80 million.
As we eagerly anticipate the auction, Alex Rotter, Christie’s chairman of 20th and 21st century art, says, “Every time a painting like this comes up for auction it changes the market not only for Warhol, but for the art market itself.”
Will the star power of two of the 20th century’s biggest names bring with it a new record? We shall see! Discover our selection of Andy Warhol original screenprints for sale or sell your Andy Warhol art and contact Andipa via sales@andipa.com or call +44 (0)20 7589 2371.