RICHARD HAMILTON C.H. (BRITISH 1922-2011) §
FIVE TYRES REMOULDED, 1972
£8,190
Auction: 25 January 2023 from 10:00 GMT
Description
The complete set of 8 works including seven screenprints in black on frosted mylar (superimposed on each other), and one relief cast in white silicone elastomer, 2/150, with accompanying collotype text sheet, all loose (as issued) contained in the original cream portfolio with printed title, signed and numbered in pencil on the Depths of Cut screenprint and on the reverse of the silicone relief, (there were also 15 artist's proofs), co-published by Professional Prints A.G., Zug, and Eye Editions, Switzerland and Ohios
Dimensions
each sheet 60cm (23 1/4in), 85cm (33 1/2in)
Provenance
Provenance: Bloomsbury Auctions, London, 11th December 2013, lot 167.
Footnote
'All art is equal - there was no hierarchy of value. Elvis was to one side of a long line while Picasso was strung out on the other side ... TV is neither less nor more legitimate an influence than, for example, is New York Abstract Expressionism'
Richard Hamilton was interested in graphics and printing, particularly the impact of technology on the production of art and the evolution of a creative idea. He had studied engineering draughtsmanship as well as art, and worked for a period as a commercial designer. Always keen to embrace new technologies, he was quick to utilise computer-generation in the production of artworks. We can see many of Hamilton’s interests and technical skills come together in Five Tyres Remoulded.
This iconic work from 1971 was many years in the making; Hamilton originally started work on the first drawings that would evolve into this project in 1951. He wanted to engage with the visual impact of an everyday but skilfully-designed object, the car tyre. He started with a series of perspective drawings which eventually became a six-coloured screenprint in 1964. He wanted to emboss the sheet with a very stark relief but was not yet able to fully resolve how to do this; the work therefore became Five Tyres Abandoned. It was not until 1970 that a solution arose, when the art dealer Carl Solway saw the work in Hamilton’s studio and suggested he find a computer programme that would resolve the perspective problems.
The final work comprises one collotype printed with text, seven screenprints in black on mylar that superimpose over each other and one relief cast in white silicone elastomer. Conveying the perspective, depth and texture of tyre design, the refined composition belies the complex, near-two-decade production process. Five Tyres Remoulded showcases and elevates an everyday item; for Hamilton, something as carefully designed as car tyre would always be an artwork.