Franz Kafka (F. & S. II.226)
Franz Kafka (F. & S. II.226)
Signed Print
Andy Warhol
£21,000-£30,000Value Indicator
$45,000-$60,000 Value Indicator
$40,000-$60,000 Value Indicator
¥200,000-¥290,000 Value Indicator
€25,000-€35,000 Value Indicator
$210,000-$310,000 Value Indicator
¥4,020,000-¥5,740,000 Value Indicator
$28,000-$40,000 Value Indicator
AAGR (5 years) 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: Screenprint
Edition size: 200
Year: 1980
Size: H 113cm x W 91cm
Signed: Yes
Format: Signed Print
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Auction Results
| Auction Date | Auction House | Location | Hammer Price | Return to Seller | Buyer Paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 2025 | SBI Art Auction | Japan | |||
| December 2024 | Forum Auctions London | United Kingdom | |||
| January 2022 | Phillips London | United Kingdom | |||
| May 2021 | Skinner, Marlborough | United States | |||
| October 2020 | Sotheby's New York | United States | |||
| December 2017 | Ketterer Kunst Hamburg | Germany | |||
| July 2014 | Christie's New York | United States |
Meaning & Analysis
Andy Warhol’s print Franz Kafka is from his acclaimed Ten Portraits Of Jews Of The Twentieth Century series from 1980. The sitter, Franz Kafka is regarded as one of the most significant writers of the 20th century, famed for both his short stories and novels that fuse the genre of realism with fantasy. Known for his fascination with the concept of fame, Warhol in this series looks to subject’s whose accomplishments transcend this realm of surface level fame and glamour.
Franz Kafka is depicted in Warhol’s characteristic late graphic style as he merges elements of realism with abstraction. Taking a well-known photograph of Kafka, Warhol uses blue hues to flood the sitters face and blue geometric shapes layered on the surface. Set against a stark black backdrop, hand-drawn, crayon-like lines are used to accentuate Kafka’s features, providing the portrait with a graphic quality. Franz Kafka is typical of Warhol’s exploration into the tensions between photographic representation and abstraction through the screen print method.
Displaying a subtlety and sophistication in Warhol’s technical advancement of the screen print method, the abstraction of Kafka’s original photograph charges the portrait with new meaning. Warhol’s use of vivid, flattened colours that allude to the notion of abstraction transport the sitter into from the past into present, working to create a 1980s Pop Art icon.
Andy Warhol was a leading figure of the Pop Art movement and is often considered the father of Pop Art. Born in 1928, Warhol allowed cultural references of the 20th century to drive his work. From the depiction of glamorous public figures, such as Marilyn Monroe, to the everyday Campbell’s Soup Can, the artist challenged what was considered art by blurring the boundaries between high art and mass consumerism. Warhol's preferred screen printing technique further reiterated his obsession with mass culture, enabling art to be seen as somewhat of a commodity through the reproduced images in multiple colour ways.
