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The Chief - Signed Print by Roy Lichtenstein 1956 - MyArtBroker

The Chief
Signed Print

Roy Lichtenstein

Price data unavailable

AAGR (5 years) This estimate blends recent public auction records with our own private sale data and network demand.

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Medium: Lithograph

Edition size: 25

Year: 1956

Size: H 43cm x W 54cm

Signed: Yes

Format: Signed Print

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The value of Roy Lichtenstein’s The Chief (signed) is estimated to be worth between £4,250 and £6,500. This lithograph print, created in 1956, has an auction history of one sale on 16th June 2022. The hammer price for this sale was £4,586. The edition size of this artwork is limited to 25.

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Auction Results

Auction DateAuction HouseLocation
Hammer Price
Return to Seller
Buyer Paid
June 2022Wright United States

Meaning & Analysis

Similar to Indians Pursued by American Dragoons from 1952, this illustration of a tribal chief wearing a feather headdress manifests Lichtenstein’s earliest satirical sensibilities. The work appropriates its main figure from traditional Western paintings featuring American Indians. However, the artist inserts the subject matter into a surprising cubist narrative. In line with Ten Dollar Bill of the same year, Lichtenstein renders his chief in profile, flattened against the canvas in an amorphic manner. Utilising markedly unrealistic proportions, the shapes are here abstracted and verging on mythical.

Lichtenstein lends his angular composition and elementary forms a whimsical painterly quality, elevating these from serious to comedic. Through careful tracing and contouring, he produces radical flatness and sketch-like qualities. In doing so, the artist offers an ultimate parody of fine art as well as a commentary on the fetishised representation of indegenous heritage.

  • Roy Lichtenstein, born in New York, 1923, is a seminal figure in the Pop Art movement, renowned for his comic book and advertisement-inspired artworks. His transformative journey from classical painter to Pop Art pioneer began with his iconic piece, Look Mickey, marking the fusion of painting with pop culture. Lichtenstein’s works, including Whaam!, Drowning Girl, and Crying Girl, blend parody and satire, challenging the boundaries between popular culture and ‘high art’. With over 5,000 pieces to his name, Lichtenstein’s enduring influence resonates in contemporary art, his works celebrated in prestigious institutions worldwide.