The Poetic Work That Set John Giorno's Auction Record

John Giorno, LIFE IS A KILLER, BLACK AND BLUE (1988) sold for $75,600 at Sotheby's in New York on November 17, 2022. The silkscreen on vinyl work, numbered A/P 1/1, had been traded once in the past.

John Giorno was poet, performer and visual artist. He was the star of Andy Warhol's Sleep, one of the Pop artist's earliest and most famous experimental films. Giorno made his own mark on New York's avant-garde scene with his innovative Dial-A-Poem project. As well as Giorno Poetry Systems, he became known for his vibrant text-based Poem Paintings, such as his record-setting 1988 silkscreen.

The sale beat the artist’s previous auction record by $38,100, a 100% rise.

The previous record was set by I Am Waiting In Line With My Groceries And I Want To Get Away Without Incident (1989), which sold for $37,500 at Christie's on May 18, 2017. The work had not been traded before.