Blue Face
Blue Face
Signed Mixed Media
Roy Lichtenstein
£23,000-£35,000Value
Indicator
$45,000-$70,000 Value Indicator
$40,000-$60,000 Value Indicator
¥210,000-¥320,000 Value Indicator
€27,000-€40,000 Value Indicator
$230,000-$350,000 Value Indicator
¥4,280,000-¥6,520,000 Value Indicator
$29,000-$45,000 Value Indicator
This estimate blends recent public auction records with our own private sale data and network demand.
There aren’t enough data points on this work for a comprehensive result. Please speak to a specialist by making an enquiry.
Medium: Mixed Media
Format: Signed Mixed Media
Year: 1989
Size: H 137cm x W 85cm
Edition size: 60
Signed: Yes
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Roy Lichtenstein's signed Mixed Media artwork, 'Blue Face', created in 1989, is currently estimated to be worth between £23,000 and £35,000. Over the past five years, this piece has demonstrated its investment potential with an average return to the seller of £19,670 and a hammer price range from £15,875 in June 2022 to £28,889 in April 2021. This artwork has sold six times at auction since its first sale in October 2003, with one sale occurring in the last 12 months. The artwork has been sold in the United States, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom, reflecting its global appeal. The edition size of this artwork is limited to 60.
Auction Results
| Auction Date | Auction House | Artwork | Hammer Price | Return to Seller | Buyer Paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sotheby's London - United Kingdom | Blue Face - Signed Mixed Media | ||||
| October 2023 | Phillips New York - United States | Blue Face - Signed Mixed Media | |||
| April 2021 | Sotheby's New York - United States | Blue Face - Signed Mixed Media | |||
| April 2018 | Christie's New York - United States | Blue Face - Signed Mixed Media | |||
| October 2003 | Bonhams New Bond Street - United Kingdom | Blue Face - Signed Mixed Media |
Meaning & Analysis
Utilising a wide repertoire of printing methods, Lichtenstein translated the gestural strokes of Abstract Expressionism into a Pop Art idiom in his Brushstroke Faces series of the late 1980s. The artist sought to move away from appropriation in this work and is therefore actively exploiting the abstract qualities of his own visual language. In Blue Face, Lichtenstein reflects on the constructivist power that only a select few brushstrokes can have on the overall composition.
The brush strokes in Blue Face are flattened with the help of an uncharacteristically muted colour palette. The work is freed from a personal narrative, yet is imbued with formal comedy. The same stylistic tendencies can be detected in another work from the series, titled Blonde. As the ascending brushstrokes are intersected by upwards flowing ones, the work is imbued with an almost musical undertone.
The pale grey and light blue strokes, representing the body of the main structure, flow in all directions. The outline of a mouth is marked in mustard yellow, while the dark green and blue smudges above it are indicative of eyes. The origins of the Brushstroke series, which were derived from a comic book source, are alluded to in the one blue dotted patch constituting the face of the figure.
Even in the simple details of Blue Face, there is an inherent criticism directed at the art historical conventions granting authority and inimitability to brushwork.
