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Whaam! - Signed Print by Roy Lichtenstein 1967 - MyArtBroker

Whaam!
Signed Print

Roy Lichtenstein

£1,700-£2,600Value Indicator

$3,350-$5,000 Value Indicator

$3,050-$4,650 Value Indicator

¥16,000-¥24,000 Value Indicator

2,050-3,150 Value Indicator

$17,000-$25,000 Value Indicator

¥320,000-¥500,000 Value Indicator

$2,150-$3,250 Value Indicator

-2% AAGR

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: 3000

Year: 1967

Size: H 63cm x W 147cm

Signed: Yes

Format: Signed Print

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The value of Roy Lichtenstein’s Whaam! (signed) is estimated to be worth between £1,800 and £2,700. This lithograph print, created in 1967, has shown consistent value growth over the past five years, with the hammer price ranging from £850 in May 2020 to £17,000 in November 2021. This work has an auction history of 20 total sales since its entry to the market in March 2007. The edition size of this artwork is limited to 3,000.

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Auction Results

Auction DateAuction HouseLocation
Hammer Price
Return to Seller
Buyer Paid
March 2023Tate Ward Auctions United Kingdom
January 2023Lyon & Turnbull Edinburgh United Kingdom
December 2022Palm Beach Modern Auctions United States
November 2022Swann Galleries United States
November 2022Waddington's Canada
November 2021Bonhams New Bond Street United Kingdom
August 2021Lyon & Turnbull Edinburgh United Kingdom

Meaning & Analysis

Politically loaded or socially subversive statements are barely concealed beneath Lichtenstein’s vibrant colours and graphic forms, and Whaam!is no exception. Created at the same time as the war in Vietnam was escalating, the political implications of Whaam! become hard to ignore. The futility of war is suggested by the superficial aesthetic depicting aggressive, careless masculine ideals of conquest and violence, which in fact serves to convey a poignant message. Lichtenstein’s also served in the US army in the 1940s.

The original composition of Whaam! is taken from a panel drawn by Irv Novick which was published in issue number 89 of All-American Men of War, published by DC Comics in the previous year, February 1962. Altering and adapting the original, Lichtenstein transforms the image and imbues it with his own artistic identity; far from being a simple copyist, Lichtenstein was sophisticated in his reinvention of the visual language of popular culture. In his own words, "I am nominally copying, but I am really restating the copied thing in other terms. In doing that, the original acquires a totally different texture. It isn't thick or thin brushstrokes, it's dots and flat colours and unyielding lines."

The year 1963 was an important one for the artist, during it he made some of his most well-known and successful works alongside Whaam!, including Hopeless and Drowning Girl. Depicted in his bright, vibrant colour palette and with underlying parody, they transform cliché into works of art, with a satirical take on popular fiction that elevates trivial or familiar subjects into meaningful social commentary, blurring the distinction between high art and visual culture. This prosperous period of Lichtenstein’s career would go on not only to cement his name at the forefront of the American Pop Art movement, but to shape the trajectory of modern art.

The original work, Whaam! was first exhibited at the Leo Castelli Gallery in New York City when it was created in 1963, and was later purchased by the Tate Gallery, London, in 1966. It has been on permanent display at Tate Modern since 2006.

Roy Lichtenstein was a leading figure in the Pop Art movement during the second half of the 20th century. His distinctive artistic style is inspired by the visual language of advertising and mass consumerism that pervaded American popular culture during his lifetime, and his work recalls a society of widespread commercialism that has remained powerfully relevant to this day. He borrowed artistic techniques from the commercial printing industry in his work, for example his appropriation of the Ben-Day dots, a technique derived from the images reproduced in newspaper print, meticulously recreating the industrial process in his own hand. He also produced works that were influenced by comic strips, appropriating and parodying the typical motifs such as lettering and speech balloons, all of which would become signatures of his artwork. These distinctive and culturally relevant tropes are defining elements of Whaam!, a work that exemplifies Lichtenstein’s recognisable and acclaimed style. The comic strip style was a means for the artist to visually represent narrative in an accessible and engaging manner, adeptly incorporating a wide range of subject matter relating to the human condition.

  • 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.