Nan Goldin — Suzanne in the Green Bathroom, Pergamon Museum, East Berlin - COA For Sale

Nan Goldin — Suzanne in the Green Bathroom, Pergamon Museum, East Berlin, 1984 — Vintage Offset Print, c. 2002

Vintage four-colour offset reproduction of one of Nan Goldin’s most recognisable images fromThe Ballad of Sexual Dependency:Suzanne in the Green Bathroom, Pergamon Museum, East Berlin, 1984.

The original photograph was taken byNan Goldin (b. 1953)in East Berlin in 1984. Goldin is one of the most influential photographers of the late twentieth century, celebrated for her intensely personal documentation of friendship, intimacy, sexuality and the artistic counterculture surrounding her in New York, Berlin and elsewhere.The Ballad of Sexual Dependency, first presented as a slideshow and later published as a landmark photobook, became the defining work of her career.

The woman portrayed isSuzanne Fletcher, not simply an anonymous sitter but an important figure within Goldin’s personal and artistic circle. Fletcher was also an actress associated with the independent and experimental film scene, appearing in films including Jim Jarmusch’sPermanent Vacation(1980), Sara Driver’sYou Are Not I(1981), andSleepwalk(1986). She appears repeatedly in Goldin’s work and was one of the people whose lives became part of the visual narrative ofThe Ballad of Sexual Dependency.

This particular image therefore brings togethertwo interconnected figures of the New York independent cultural scene of the period: Nan Goldin behind the camera and Suzanne Fletcher in front of it.

The original work,Suzanne in the Green Bathroom, Pergamon Museum, East Berlin, 1984, is represented in important institutional collections, including the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.

The sheet offered here is aglossy four-colour offset reproduction, believed to date from approximately2002. It isnot an original Cibachrome photograph by Nan Goldin, nor is it offered as a signed artist’s proof or numbered limited edition.

According to the documented provenance, the print comes from the archive of aformer fine-art printer, where it was stored flat and protected from light.

The image side is invery good condition. The reverse shows only minor traces consistent with handling and storage.

Details

• Artist: Nan Goldin
• Subject: Suzanne Fletcher
• Title of original work:Suzanne in the Green Bathroom, Pergamon Museum, East Berlin, 1984
• Original photograph: 1984
• This reproduction: circa 2002
• Technique: four-colour offset print
• Finish: glossy
• Sheet dimensions:23.5 × 15.3 cm
• Condition: very good on the image side; minor handling traces on reverse
• Provenance: former fine-art printer’s archive
• Accompanied by documentation concerning provenance and authenticity of the vintage offset print
• Not signed
• Not numbered
• Not offered as an original photograph, artist’s proof or authenticated limited edition by Nan Goldin

Please note:the photograph showing the work framed is included for presentation purposes only.The lot is sold unframed.