One of Andy Warhol's most iconic muses, actress and model Edie Sedgwick, is perhaps best known for her work with the influential artist, starring in many of his films such as Poor Little Rich Girl and Chelsea Girls. Dubbed an "it girl" of the era, Sedgwick would later go on to part ways with Warhol and The Factory within a year, pursuing an independent career in acting before tragically passing away at the age of 28 in 1971.
While she may have been best known as a star of the silver screen, a new art auction is shining a light on some Sedgwick's lesser-known fine artwork. Set to close November 17, the auction features 15 sketches and artworks by Sedgwick ranging from portraits and wildlife studies to pastel nudes and cartoon rats. Additionally, the auction features a stack of letters between Sedgwick and her cousin Lily Saarinen who was her art tutor for several months, as well as a photograph of her at work in the studio.
"She was the most talented young person I’ve taught art to," Saarinen is quoted by RR Auction as having said. Having spent a lot of time on California ranches for a good portion of her childhood, Saarinen goes on to out Sedgwick as a horse girl, adding that "pretty soon my life was Edie because I couldn’t do anything else. She worked frantically. She wanted to do a horse. She said she’d ridden them all her life and knew every inch of them... So she worked on this one horse. It looked like a T’ang horse. It took her all winter."
Fittingly, Sedgwick's art appears alongside works related to The Beatles, Joni Mitchell, and most importantly, Bob Dylan, whom she grew especially close to in her post-Factory years and was even theorized to have inspired his 1965 hit "Like a Rolling Stone." Offering an unseen side of the late muse, a self-portrait of Sedgwick painted at the height of her Factory days is expected to possibly fetch upwards of $40,000.
Photo courtesy of RR Auction
Check out more of Edie Sedgwick's art here.
Photo via Getty/John Springer Collection/CORBIS/Corbis
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