Two Cherubs Embrace

A unique drawing by Andy Warhol

Church, faith, and religious practices were a constant in Warhol’s life from early years—his family was devoutly Catholic.  It is said that, even in his adult years, Warhol faithfully attended mass; in New York, he visited his local church several times a week until his death. These influences also carried over into Warhol’s works—he was inspired to create more than twenty large paintings based on Leonardo’s Last Supper and transformed several religious Renaissance paintings in his Renaissance Suite (1984). A trip to the Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh will often reveal a section devoted exclusively to Warhol's works which revolve around his religion. Perhaps more recognizable are his angels—the winged cherubs which permeate his work as early as the 1950s. From his original drawings to his self-published book (In the Bottom of My Garden), angels and cherubs may be found dotted throughout his life's oeuvre.

 

Year: Circa 1955
Medium: Original china ink drawing on paper
Size: 11.75 x 8.875 in (29.8 x 22.5 cm)
Frame Size: 15.5 x 13 in (39.3 x 33 cm)

Provenance: 
Estate of Andy Warhol (stamped)
The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts (stamped)
Long-Sharp Gallery

Authenticated by the Authentication Board of The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts (stamp on verso), Foundation archive number on verso in pencil, initialed by the person who entered the works into The Foundation archive.

Two Cherubs Embrace beside a six-foot figure to scale.

 

Schmuckli, Claudia. "Andy Warhol: The Last Supper." The Guggenheim Museums and Foundation. 1999. Web. <https://www.guggenheim.org/exhibition/andy-warhol-the-last-supper>.