Skulls by Andy Warhol is a series of our silkscreen prints from 1976. The subject matter of this portfolio, appearing between 1975 works like Mick Jagger and later 1970s works like Hammer and Sickle and Grapes, represents an interesting shift in Warhol’s work. Besides exhibiting a propensity for still life artworks, the morbidity of the Skulls series points back to earlier works like Death and Disaster and Gun. Warhol’s interest in death and mortality was likely accelerated by his experience of being shot and critically wounded in 1968, an event which profoundly affected his life and art.

Historically in art, the human skull represents the theme “vanitas, “ known as mortality or the shortness of life. Thus, Warhol’s skulls may serve as a motif or a part of Warhol’s desire to evoke the ephemerality of the human condition. With the help of assistants, Warhol was able to create multiple prints of the subject, varying in color combinations and the level of individual vibrancy.