Like mine, Dennis’s art grows out of alienation and the theme of frustration in modern life. He always responded to city anxiety, graffiti, and etchings on walls expressing the frustration of urban life. That still really rings his bell, ---Ed Ruscha
DENNIS HOPPER IMAGERY OF THE 1960’S Silver Gelatin Prints, Serigraphs,and Serigraphs on Metal “In the mid-fifties, actor and friend James Dean encouraged Hopper's interest in photography, which ultimately became an extremely important part of his artistic endeavors.” ALL WORKS OF ART IN THIS CATALOG ARE AVAILABLE
DENNIS HOPPER (1936-2010) Successful as an artist, actor, screenwriter, and director; Dennis Hopper's first love was painting. He began to paint at age nine on his family farm in Kansas in the mid 1940s. Living in San Diego during his high school years, he was introduced to the work of Jackson Pollock, Franz Kline, Emerson Woeffler and Richard Diebenkorn. His paintings began to reflect his interest in Abstract Expressionism. In the mid-fifties, actor and friend James Dean encouraged Hopper's interest in photography, which ultimately became an extremely important part of his artistic endeavors. Upon moving to Los Angeles, he intuitively immersed himself in, and collaborated with many influential artists, actors, and musicians. Tragedy struck though as over 300 of his early oil paintings were destroyed in the tragic Bel Air fire of 1961. Traumatized but not deterred by the destruction, fate stepped in when Brooke Hayward gave Hopper a birthday gift that altered his life.
Hayward recalls, "I spent my last $351 on a Nikon that was thereafter permanently slung around his neck. He never left the house without it. It turned out that he was as natural a photographer as he was an actor, constantly taking pictures of everything and everyone he came into contact with that intrigued him." Among the subjects he photographed in the early 1960's were Jasper Johns, Andy Warhol, David Hockney, Roy Lichtenstein, Ed Ruscha, Claus Oldenburg, and Robert Rauschenberg. In the early 60's, the camera, according to Hopper, was his only creative outlet selling empty coke bottles in order to print his images. He has said that his photographs cost him money but kept him alive. Hopper reveled in the Duchampian notion of art being anything that an artist pointed to and declared art and used his camera as his Duchampian finger. His work comments on a fascinating period of history when a Pop sensibility emerged, the West Coast established itself as a new venue for creative expression, and photography asserted itself as an important artistic medium. In addition in the early 1960’s the artist did collaborate with the artist Marcel Duchamp on the “Green Hotel� work of art.
All these prints were exhibited at a Dennis Hopper Solo Exhibition at the La Louvre Gallery in 1988. The Warhol Art Forum prints were also exhibited at the 1988 LA International Art Fair at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
"There was no question in my mind that Dennis was primarily and essentially a photographer during the 1961-1967 period...and a really damn good one.� —Walter Hopps
Torn Poster Girl (2000) which is actually "After the Fall", 1961-64 Unique Silver Gelatin Photo, signed on the front. Note the Silver Gelatin Photograph listed here was used to reproduce both illustrations on Page 108 and 109 in the Stedelijk, Amsterdam Museum Exhibition Catalog, “Dennis Hopper (A Keen Eye), Artist, Photographer, Filmmaker”. The new title later used for the “After the Fall” image is ‘Torn Poster Girl”(2000). The exhibition ran from February 17 to April 16, 2001. This image is shown in two sizes, one 24” x 16” on page 108, and a 14’ by 9.5’ blow up of the photo on page 109, both were in the exhibition.
"I was doing something that I thought could have some impact someday. In many ways, it's really these photographs that kept me going creatively." —Dennis Hopper
“Fractured Girl (Billboard), Los Angeles 1964” (Goldtone) Original Serigraph (Silkscreen) 1/2 Printers Proofs from an edition of 6 Signed in pencil lower right and annotated 1/2 P.P. on the lower left 37 1/2” x 55 ½, Illustrated, Taschen Catalog, pages 128-129
“Bad Heart” (Goldtone) Original Serigraph (Silkscreen) 2/3 Printers Proofs from an edition of 6 Signed in pencil lower left and annotated 2/3 P.P. lower right 37 1/2” x 55 1/2” Illustrated, Taschen Catalog, pages 100-101 Catalog Notation: Like mine, Dennis’s art grows out of alienation and the theme of frustration in modern life. He always responded to city anxiety, graffiti, and etchings on walls expressing the frustration of urban life. That still really rings his bell,---Ed Ruscha
Title Unknown (Tire with paper shreds) (Goldtone) Original Serigraph (Silkscreen) 1/2 Printers Proofs from an edition of 6 Signed in pencil lower right and annotated 1/2 P.P. on the lower left, the black image of this print is printed on the back of the print, but they used the front side to produce the finished print. 37 1/2� x 55 1/2�
“Broken Window(Harlem), (Black and White)1961 Original Serigraph (Silkscreen) 2/3 Printers Proofs from an edition of 6 Signed in pencil lower left and annotated 2/3 P.P. lower right 37 1/2” x 55 1/2” Illustrated, Taschen Catalog, pages 108-109
The next four print’s were published using the 1964 Art Forum Magazine cover image by Dennis Hopper featuring Andy Warhol. The cover image features Andy Warhol wearing Ray Ban sunglasses and blowing a dandelion flower. The actual cover is the top right image in the print. To make this print, the artist repeated the image six times on the paper, but removed the type on the other five photos of Andy Warhol. The original editions were on metal, however the Master Printer, Richard Duardo talked Dennis Hopper into doing the four Printers Proofs in unique colors, to give the artist an idea of what the image would look like in different colors, for possible future print collaborations using this imagery.
1964 Art Forum-Andy Warhol (Blue Version) Original Serigraph (Silkscreen)-Unique Color Variant 3/4 Printers Proofs from an edition of 10 on metal Signed in Pencil lower left “62-88”, Signed Lower right in Pencil “P.P. 3/4 D. Hopper” 36 1/4” x 35 1/2”
1964 Art Forum-Andy Warhol (Light Silver Version) Original Serigraph (Silkscreen)-Unique Color Variant 1/4 Printers Proofs from an edition of 10 on metal Signed in Pencil lower left “62-88”, signed in the middle in pencil “Till Your in my arms again, Love” Signed Lower right in Pencil “P.P. 1/4 D. Hopper” 36 1/4” x 35 1/2” The Master Printer Richard Duardo used to have all of his printers proofs annotated “til you're in my arms again, love” as a private joke.
1964 Art Forum-Andy Warhol (White Version) Original Serigraph (Silkscreen)-Unique Color Variant 4/4 Printers Proofs from an edition of 10 on metal Signed in Pencil lower left “62-88”, Signed Lower right in Pencil “P.P. 4/4 D. Hopper” 36 1/4” x 35 1/2”
1964 Art Forum-Andy Warhol (Black and White Version) Original Serigraph (Silkscreen)-Unique Color Variant 2/4 Printers Proofs from an edition of 10 on metal Signed in Pencil lower left “62-88”, Signed Lower right in Pencil “P.P. 2/4 D. Hopper” 36 1/4” x 35 1/2”
All prints are available for sale
David Lawrence Gallery http://www.printed-editions.com/gallery/david-lawrence-gallery
(310) 666-5858 thedlgla@gmail.com P.O. Box 3702 Beverly Hills, CA. 90212