Andy Warhol
A long-lost digital portrait by Andy Warhol has recently resurfaced after nearly forty years.
Digital art has been a popular topic for critics and commentators within the art world for several years now. This is mostly because of the rise of AI and NFTs and what they mean for both the art market and the livelihood of artists themselves. However, digital art is a far older medium than some people like to think. In 1985, personal computers were starting to become a major consumer item. That year, to show off their Amiga 1000 computer, the tech company Commodore organized an event with Andy Warhol and Blondie lead singer Debbie Harry. Using the computer, Warhol created a completely digital portrait of Harry at an event at Lincoln Center.
Warhol was already somewhat familiar with digital art at the time. In his biography of Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson relates a story of the tech giant attending Sean Lennon’s ninth birthday party in October 1984. Another attendee was Warhol, who took an interest in the Apple Macintosh computer Jobs had brought with him. Excited at experimenting with the new medium’s drawing application, Warhol reportedly shouted at Keith Haring, “Look! Keith! I drew a circle!” In her 2019 book, Debbie Harry explained that they printed only two physical copies of the image, one of which was given to her. The whereabouts of the other were previously unknown. That is until computer technician Jeff Bruette claimed to own the second copy. Brunette is the Commodore technician who taught Warhol how to operate the Amiga 1000. According to Bruette, Warhol gave him the other printed copy as a gift. Bruette not only has the other physical copy of the Debbie Harry portrait, but also a Warhol-signed disc containing its file and several other images Warhol made using the computer. Warhol created some of these images while sitting for an interview for Commodore’s magazine Amiga World. We only know this because Bruette announced his plans to sell the image and the disc. “I thought it was time the world got to interact with this extraordinary artwork the way it was meant to be experienced.”
Some have estimated the image to be worth millions, with Bruette giving an asking price of $26 million. In 2021, five NFTs made from some of Warhol’s drawings using the Amgia were sold at Christie’s for $3.4 million. Though Bruette has received several offers from galleries and auction houses, he plans to sell the work privately.