Butterfly

Executed in 1956, Butterfly is an iconic work that was conceived at the inception of Warhol’s extensive and acclaimed artistic career. He started as a commercial illustrator in 1949, working for clients including the famed Tiffany & Co., Vogue, Glamour, and The New York Times. The current work exhibits his signature blotted-line ink drawing—a process he developed while studying pictorial design at Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) which combines drawing with basic printmaking. The process allowed Warhol to create multiple illustrations with similar themes in a timely manner. It was a craft he continued to refine into the 1950s when he began his commercial career after moving to New York from Pittsburgh, enabling him to present numerous ideas to clients at once to increase the likelihood of his illustrations to be chosen and featured as the final advertisement. After creating the blotted outline, Warhol often filled them in with watercolour dyes or applied gold leaf. His experimentation—and fascination—with gold leaf, was likely inspired by the gilded images of icons and saints in the Byzantine Catholic church he attended with his family as a child in Pittsburgh. Butterfly is therefore a fusion of Warhol’s earlier exploration of the blotted line technique and his speculative inspiration from the characteristic gold of Byzantinesque art.

The current work further embodies Warhol’s fondness for butterflies, as he once described them as 'jewels of the sky' that will 'provide you with endless pleasure if given enough attention'. Warhol was profoundly fond of animals, creating many works depicting them, and the butterfly was one of his recurring motifs. Yet, the current work is the only butterfly work executed with gold leaf from the artist’s early oeuvre to appear on the market, implying its rarity. Resting against a banal piece of greyish-coloured paper, the golden butterfly shimmers in its stationary position. With its wings fully spread, the butterfly radiates glowing vitality. Star-like shapes dot the tips of the butterfly’s antenna and line its body, making it all dreamier and magical. The simplicity of the outline created by his blotted line technique is reminiscent of vector drawings in children’s colouring books, the mass of golden colour filling and infusing it with noble elegance. The use of gold leaf creates gentle ruffles on the paper surface, creating soft creases. A minimalist illustration capturing the key characteristics of a butterfly, the current work is an attestation to Warhol’s curiosity in seeking differing artistic techniques and deep interest in butterflies.