ONE OF THE FINEST PRODUCTIONS OF THE LIMITED EDITIONS CLUB: JACOB LAWRENCE’S EIGHT PASSAGES, ONE OF ONLY 22 EXHIBITION PORTFOLIOS

LAWRENCE, Jacob. Eight Passages. New York: Limited Editions Club, (1990). Double elephant portfolio (26 by 40 inches), eight color silk-screens and two text leaves, in original black cloth box. $45,000.

A magnificent production, number 2 of only 22 exhibition copies with eight superb original multi-colored silkscreen prints by Lawrence depicting a preacher and his congregation, each print signed and numbered by Lawrence.

A splendidly produced work, depicting scenes of a preacher with his congregation, with text from the King James Version of Genesis lithographed from mylars handwritten by the artist next to the stunning silk-screens. According to the artist, "I was baptized in the Abyssinian Baptist Church in about 1932. There I attended church, I attended Sunday school, and I remember the ministers giving very passionate sermons pertaining to the Creation. This was over fifty years ago, and you know, these things stay with you even though you don't realize what an impact these experiences are making on you at the time. As I was doing the series I think that this was in the back of my mind, hearing this minister talk about these things" "The silk-screen stencils of Jacob Lawrence's paintings were expertly processed in New York City… Anywhere from 17 to 21 screens were required to bring out the coloring of each illustration, making a total of 144 separate stencils, all of which were destroyed after the strictly limited number of some 400 original sets of prints had been achieved on the fine Whatman paper… 'Jacob Lawrence, one of the great figurative painters of the 20th century… rose to fame in 1941 after creating one of the most original and forceful series of narrative works in the history of American art-the 'Migration of the Negro.' He was the first African American artist to be represented by a major New York gallery and one of the first to have a solo exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art" (Regina Hackett). In addition to the edition of 400 copies, there was also an edition of 50 larger copies of the silk-screens loose in a portfolio with each print signed by Lawrence, and an edition of 22 "Exhibition Portfolios" printed on paper twice the size as that used for the edition of 50 copies, with each print again being signed and numbered by Lawrence. In addition to the edition of 400 copies, there was also an edition of 50 larger copies of the silk-screens loose in a portfolio with each print signed by Lawrence, and an edition of 22 "Exhibition" copies printed on paper twice the size as that used for the edition of 50 copies, with each print again being signed and numbered by Lawrence.

Fine condition. An extraordinary production.