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PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF MR. AND MRS. ALLAN FRUMKIN
Peter Saul (B. 1934)
Story of Race Hate
Details
Peter Saul (B. 1934)
Story of Race Hate
signed and dated 'Saul 69' (lower right)
oil on canvas
75 7/8 x 67 7/8 in. (192.7 x 172.4 cm.)
Painted in 1969.
Story of Race Hate
signed and dated 'Saul 69' (lower right)
oil on canvas
75 7/8 x 67 7/8 in. (192.7 x 172.4 cm.)
Painted in 1969.
Provenance
Acquired directly from the artist by the present owner
Literature
"Continuing Solos," New York Magazine, vol. 2, no. 47, 24 November 1969, p. 28.
Exhibited
New York, Allan Frumkin Gallery, Peter Saul: New Paintings, November 1969.
New York, Frumkin/Adams Gallery, Peter Saul: Political Paintings, 1990-1991, n.p. (illustrated).
New York, Frumkin/Adams Gallery, Peter Saul: Political Paintings, 1990-1991, n.p. (illustrated).
Further Details
The turbulent history of race relations in America has hardly ever been as fraught as it was in the 1960s, especially in Southern California. The African-American Civil Rights movement, born out of the decisive ruling of Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, continued to gain momentum throughout the decade. However, this determined march towards equality was frequently punctuated with outbursts of terrible violence. Artists responded to the social injustices of the age, including the Cold War and the interminable conflict in Vietnam, with a plethora of visual proclamations ranging in tone from outrage and disgust to cynicism and apathy.
Enter Peter Saul, one of the most audacious painters of the era. Saul fearlessly embraced the full spectrum of American atrocity as fodder for his equally irreverent and psychedelic pictures. The artist’s strongest works present the viewer with scenes of decadent, cartoonish violence and pointedly problematic imagery that could be easily misconstrued as the misogynistic, racist musings of a prodigiously talented madman. These difficult works channel the most caustic fever dreams of America’s subconscious and filter them through a fluorescent kaleidoscope. The present lot, Story of Race Hate, was painted in 1969. It depicts a grimacing nude black woman, her features exaggerated and hyper-sexualized, next to a similarly rendered, hot pink Ronald Reagan, both crucified against a Technicolor horizon. Reagan, then the Governor of California, is seen passing a handful of coins to the woman, who is simultaneously scribbling the painting’s title on his outstretched phallus and slicing it off with a gigantic golden folding knife emblazoned with the words “RACE RIOT.” Both of the figures are wearing halos; hers reads “CUTE TRICK;” his “HOLY SHIT.” To say that this is a confrontational work of art is an understatement. The specter of the Watts riots of 1965, which resulted in 34 deaths and over 40 million dollars in property damage, haunts the painting, imbuing it with deadly serious undertones that serve as a foil to the ribald vulgarity of the image. It is an acrobatic display of profane protest, and as such, it is quintessential Saul.
The artist’s legendary dealer, Allan Frumkin, operated successful galleries in both Chicago and New York, where he championed radical emerging artists alongside venerable masters such as Matisse, Mondrian and Munch. His Chicago gallery played a crucial role in developing the stateside market for Surrealism and he mounted early or debut exhibitions of such renowned artists as H. C. Westermann, Robert Arneson, Philip Pearlstein, Leon Golub and William T. Wiley. Story of Race Hate is consigned from the estate of Mr. Frumkin’s wife and collaborator, Jean, who chronicled the history of her husband’s gallery and frequently attended him on visits to artist’s studios across the country.
Enter Peter Saul, one of the most audacious painters of the era. Saul fearlessly embraced the full spectrum of American atrocity as fodder for his equally irreverent and psychedelic pictures. The artist’s strongest works present the viewer with scenes of decadent, cartoonish violence and pointedly problematic imagery that could be easily misconstrued as the misogynistic, racist musings of a prodigiously talented madman. These difficult works channel the most caustic fever dreams of America’s subconscious and filter them through a fluorescent kaleidoscope. The present lot, Story of Race Hate, was painted in 1969. It depicts a grimacing nude black woman, her features exaggerated and hyper-sexualized, next to a similarly rendered, hot pink Ronald Reagan, both crucified against a Technicolor horizon. Reagan, then the Governor of California, is seen passing a handful of coins to the woman, who is simultaneously scribbling the painting’s title on his outstretched phallus and slicing it off with a gigantic golden folding knife emblazoned with the words “RACE RIOT.” Both of the figures are wearing halos; hers reads “CUTE TRICK;” his “HOLY SHIT.” To say that this is a confrontational work of art is an understatement. The specter of the Watts riots of 1965, which resulted in 34 deaths and over 40 million dollars in property damage, haunts the painting, imbuing it with deadly serious undertones that serve as a foil to the ribald vulgarity of the image. It is an acrobatic display of profane protest, and as such, it is quintessential Saul.
The artist’s legendary dealer, Allan Frumkin, operated successful galleries in both Chicago and New York, where he championed radical emerging artists alongside venerable masters such as Matisse, Mondrian and Munch. His Chicago gallery played a crucial role in developing the stateside market for Surrealism and he mounted early or debut exhibitions of such renowned artists as H. C. Westermann, Robert Arneson, Philip Pearlstein, Leon Golub and William T. Wiley. Story of Race Hate is consigned from the estate of Mr. Frumkin’s wife and collaborator, Jean, who chronicled the history of her husband’s gallery and frequently attended him on visits to artist’s studios across the country.