''Coca-Cola (4)'', also known as ''Large Coca-Cola'', is a pop art painting by

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...

. He completed the painting in 1962 as a part of a wider collection of

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...

themed

paintings Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

, including '' Coca-Cola (3)'' and '' Green Coca-Cola Bottles'', also completed in the early to mid-1960s. The painting is of a large black and white Coke bottle, made of

acrylic Acrylic may refer to: Chemicals and materials * Acrylic acid, the simplest acrylic compound * Acrylate polymer, a group of polymers (plastics) noted for transparency and elasticity * Acrylic resin, a group of related thermoplastic or thermosett ...

pencil A pencil () is a writing or drawing implement with a solid pigment core in a protective casing that reduces the risk of core breakage, and keeps it from marking the user's hand. Pencils create marks by physical abrasion, leaving a trail ...

and Letraset on

canvas Canvas is an extremely durable plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, shelters, as a support for oil painting and for other items for which sturdiness is required, as well as in such fashion objects as handbags ...

. ''Coca-Cola (4)'' is almost a foot taller than the 6-foot ''Coca-Cola (3).''

Ownership

''Coca-Cola (4)'' was purchased nearly immediately after its creation by art patrons Mr. and Mrs. Melvin Hirsh of Beverly Hills. It was acquired from Irving Blum's Ferus Gallery, the site of Andy Warhol's first solo exhibition, the '' Campbell's Soup Can'' show in 1964. It was given to Christie's in New York in 1983, and was then acquired by Sotheby's auction house. The painting sold for $35.36 million in 2010, surpassing its original estimate of $25 million. Upon its purchase, Sotheby’s said ''Coca-Cola (4)'' “is a landmark in the artist’s creation of his pop art style." The buyer of the painting was

hedge fund A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that trades in relatively liquid assets and is able to make extensive use of more complex trading, portfolio-construction, and risk management techniques in an attempt to improve performance, such as sho ...

manager Stephen A. Cohen.

Coca-Cola art origins

Warhol's Coca-Cola art started in the 1950s with a drawing of a Coke bottle next to a pair of legs. His attention was turned to the pop art movement in the 60s, as well, with pop paintings based on comics and ads. Warhol tore out Coca-Cola ads from magazines to use them in collages. ''Coca-Cola (2)'' was pivotal in Warhol's style transition from hand-painted pieces to silkscreens, with a composition first sketched in black and gray, then hand painted, as a blend of pop abstraction. In Warhol's 1975 book, '' The Philosophy of Andy Warhol'', he said, “You can be watching TV and see Coca-Cola, and you know that the President drinks Coke, Liz Taylor drinks Coke, and just think, you can drink Coke, too. A Coke is a Coke and no amount of money can get you a better Coke than the one the bum on the corner is drinking. All the Cokes are the same and all the Cokes are good. Liz Taylor knows it, the President knows it, the bum knows it, and you know it." ''Coca-Cola (4)'' differs from the first two in the series, ''Coca-Cola (1)'' and ''Coca-Cola (2)'' because it has less of a free-hand style, thanks to the use of Letraset letters for the patent notice located on the front of the bottle.

References

{{Andy Warhol Paintings by Andy Warhol 1962 paintings