Kelley Walker

Galerie Catherine Bastide, Brussels
Private Collection
Sale: Sotheby's, London, Contemporary Art, 15 February 2011, Lot 56
Acquired directly from the above by the present owner

Colour: The colours in the catalogue illustration are fairly accurate, although there are fewer magenta undertones in the original. Condition: This work is in very good condition. The silkscreened chocolate elements are stable and secure.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

 Kelley Walker’s Black Star Press is an outstanding example of the artist’s sophisticated engagement with highly charged subject-matter and contemporary modes of production. Part of the well-known Black Star Press series, the present triptych consists of three digital prints of Bill Hudson’s iconic image of the Birmingham riots of 1963, which shortly after the event featured on the front cover of the New York Times.

Evocative of Andy Warhol’s Race Riot, in which the artist silkscreened photographs from the same event made by photographers of the Black Star Press Agency onto canvas, Walker’s work engages in a complex dialogue with both the event itself, Warhol’s well-known representation of it, and the work’s technical support. Although the title of the work explicitly references Warhol’s source, Walker’s image was actually shot by a photographer working for a different photo agency. Through a subtle process, the artist thus undermines the immediate associations with Warhol’s imagery, whilst simultaneously evoking an explicit dialogue with him. This is highly characteristic of Walker’s suspicion of intertextuality, which he explores throughout his work.

The work’s material production is equally sophisticated, as the artist has screenprinted splatters of chocolate on top of the photograph - thus breaking down two major innovations of Warhol’s practice, appropriation and silkscreening, into different material registers. Moreover, the chocolate splatters are silkscreened using black and white chocolate - thus representing the very material they are made of, whilst also emphasising the racially charged content of the image. This layered approach to artistic production makes Black Star Press not only an extremely powerful work within Kelley Walker’s oeuvre, but indeed a crucial statement about the status of the image in contemporary culture.