Interview of Keith Haring by Annie Leibovitz

[Pierre Tavlitzki]

It is one of the strangest portraits of contemporary art. In 1986, Annie Leibovitz, 37 years old, photographed Keith Haring, 28 years. This meeting between two major young protagonists of contemporary art was original and friendly. The artist is clothed with a full Superman-like suit, with a pattern of sinuous lines that camouflage him entirely over the wall of his studio illustrated with the same pattern.

Insist looking at the photo and you see the head and then the body. Haring, in a leaping position with forward torso, open arms and legs, looked straight into the camera of Leibovitz.

Lot 222 of the sale of Sotheby's in New York on October 15 is a large print (50 x 60 cm) that can reach for that reason an interesting price, but it is a recent issue (1995). It is estimated 30 K$. It is a platinum print from an edition of 30 copies.

In 2005 and 2006, Christie's sold successively around 30 K£ two platinum prints of dimensions similar to the Sotheby's detailed here. The date of the issue has not been provided. At 20 K$ including expenses, on 16 October 2007, Sotheby's sold a cibachrome 24 x 30 cm print.

[Pierre Tavlitzki]

Sold 19 K$ including fees. Assuming that this print was in good condition, it was an excellent deal for the buyer, undoubtedly.