RICHARD HAMILTON (1922-2011)
Adonis in Y fronts
screenprint in colours, 1963, on TH Saunders wove paper, signed, dated and dedicated Jim Stirling in pencil, numbered 30/40 (there were also some proofs), printed by the artist and Chris Prater at Kelpra Studio, London, published by the artist
Image 608 x 810 mm.
Sheet 688 x 835 mm.

The artist.
Sir James (Jim) Stirling (1924-1992), acquired from the above circa 1963.

Lullin 52

Adonis in Y fronts is among Richard Hamilton’s most celebrated prints, the title of which riffs on the popular 1962 song ‘Venus in Blue Jeans’. The print is derived from one of a series of four paintings Hamilton made between 1962-1963 under the joint title Towards a definitive statement on the coming trends in men's wear and accessories. A leading figure of British Pop Art and a key member of the Independent Group, Hamilton responded to the visual overload of post-war consumer culture, advertising and new forms of mass communication. Hamilton’s work and the wider Pop Art movement brought the imagery of popular culture into the realm of fine art, often with an ironic and disjunctive effect.

The imagery of Adonis in Y fronts derives from several disparate sources. Hamilton found the initial inspiration in an advertisement for body expanders in the bodybuilding magazine Mr Universo. The screenprint depicts the muscular torso and lower face of a man holding a chest expander, combining photographic and painterly elements. The black-and-white treatment of the face and arms contrasts with the half-twisted torso, based on a photograph of a fourth-century Greek sculpture attributed to Praxiteles. The ochre and brown tones of the upper chest were taken from a jumper featured in an advertisement for Lucky Strike cigarettes, while the lower torso is defined by the stylised ‘Y-front’, then a fashionable item of men’s underwear. The work was technically ambitious and was printed in partnership with Chris Prater at Kelpra Studio, which pioneered innovative screenprinting techniques in Britain.

The present impression is particularly notable for its provenance from the collection of Sir James Stirling (1924–1992), one of the most influential British architects of the post-war period. Acquired directly from the artist, it reflects Stirling’s close engagement with the cutting-edge contemporary art scene. His architecture combined modernist technology with historical references, vivid colour and an almost theatrical sense of composition, while his involvement with the Independent Group and the wider avant-garde brought him into contact with the artists and ideas that shaped British Pop Art. Stirling was a friend of Eduardo Paolozzi and collected works by him and other leading figures of the Pop Art movement, such as Roy Lichtenstein’s iconic Pistol banner (sold Christie’s New York, 12 May 2010).

Another impression of Adonis in Y fronts, from the collection of Jacqueline Matisse Monnier, granddaughter of Henri Matisse, was sold at Christie’s Paris in April 2022 for €88,200. That impression was dedicated to the consignor’s mother and father-in-law Alexina ‘Teeny’ and Marcel Duchamp and currently holds the record price for the subject.