Gems
The complete set of four screen-prints in colors
Medium: Screen-print in colors on Strathmore Bristol paper
Year: 1978
Sheet: 30×40 inches (76.2 x 101.6 cm)
Edition: 20
Artist’s Proofs: 5
Other: 1 PP, 2 PP numbered in Roman numerals
Printer: Rupert Jasen Smith, New-York
Publisher: Andy Warhol Enterprises, Inc., New York
Literature: Feldman & Schellmann II.186-189
II.186, II.187 and II.188 are all unique
II.189 are all the same
Each signed and numbered in felt-tip pen ,
1. Gems Plate I (F&S II.186)
2. Gems Plate II (F&S II.187)
3. Gems (Emerald) (F&S II.188)
4. Gems (Diamond) (F&S II.189)
Gems are a portfolio of four screenprints depicting rubies, emeralds, and diamonds, known for their vibrant, Pop Art still-life approach and use of a mixed media technique that included hand-drawn lines. The series explores themes of wealth, glamour, and consumerism and holds a personal, autobiographical dimension related to Warhol’s private jewelry collection.
The stones are presented in a bold, abstract manner, using vibrant, flat blocks of color for the facets and contrasting backgrounds, such as pink and orange, to heighten the visual impact and suggest light refraction. The gems, as ultimate symbols of opulence, reflect Warhol’s ongoing fascination with status, class, and capitalism. Gems connect as well to Warhol’s iconic portraits of celebrities like Elizabeth Taylor, who was famous for her love of rubies. Warhol once joked that he wanted to be “reincarnated as a big ring on Elizabeth Taylor’s finger” highlighting the link between the inanimate object and the allure of celebrity. After Warhol’s death, an extensive, yet largely hidden, personal jewelry collection was discovered. This added a private, personal layer to the series, suggesting a tension between his public persona and a private appreciation for luxury that was never fully revealed during his lifetime.
The prints were created using Warhol’s signature photographic screenprinting process, but they are characteristic of his later, more expressive style. The images were likely derived from photographs of actual loose gemstones, then transferred to a screen. In a departure from the more mechanical aesthetic of his early work, Warhol incorporated hand-drawn lines in black ink over the screenprinted color blocks to build shadows, add texture, and emphasize the structure and depth of the facets. The portfolio was produced and published by Warhol in 1978, towards the end of his career, as small editions. The series fits within his late 1970s shift toward more experimental still lifes, which also included Skulls and Space Fruits. This period marked a return to still-life subjects, reimagined through his Pop Art lens, where he explored more expressive techniques and a focus on inanimate luxury objects rather than just celebrity portraiture.
Single Prints
Mainichi Auction Tokyo: 19 July 2025
Estimated: JPY 2,000,000 – 3,000,000
JPY 2,990,000 / USD 20,095
ANDY WARHOL
from GEMS (F & S.II.186), 1978
Screenprint
Signed in felt pen and ed.20 at lower left image
Piguet Geneva: 16 March 2022
Estimated: CHF 6,000 – 8,000
CHF 7,000 (Hammer)
CHF 8,750 / USD 9,520
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
Gems (Feldman & Schellmann II.187), 1978
Color serigraphy on Strathmore
Signed and annotated A.P. (Artist Proof)
Piguet Geneva: 16 March 2022
Estimated: CHF 6,000 – 8,000
CHF 8,000 (Hammer)
CHF 10,000 / USD 10,880
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
Gems (Feldman & Schellmann II.187), 1978
Color serigraphy on Strathmore
Signed and annotated P.P. (Printer’s Proof)
Doyle New-York: 11 November 2020
Estimated: USD 8,000 – 12,000
USD 40,625
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
GEM (EMERALD) (FELDMAN/SCHELLMAN II.188), 1978
Color screenprint on Strathmore Bristol paper
Signed and numbered 13/20 in black felt-tip pen
Doyle New-York: 11 November 2020
Estimated: USD 8,000 – 12,000
USD 25,000
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
GEM (DIAMOND) (FELDMAN/SCHELLMAN II.189), 1978
Color screenprint on Strathmore Bristol paper
Signed and numbered 13/20 in black felt-tip pen
Christie’s New-York: 11 December 2013
Estimated: USD 10,000 – 15,000
USD 27,500
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
Gems (F. & S. IIA.187), 1978
Screenprint in colors on paper
Numbered ’20/20′ and signed ‘Andy Warhol’ (lower left)
Heritage Auctions: 24 May 2011
Estimated: USD 6,000 – 8,000
USD 8,365
ANDY WARHOL (American, 1928-1987)
Gems (Feldman/Schellmann, II.189), 1978
Color screenprint
Edition: 12/20
Signed and numbered lower right
Complete Sets
Christie’s New-York: 21 October 2021
Estimated: USD 70,000 – 100,000
USD 150,000
COMPLETE SET
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
Gems, 1978
The complete set of four screen-prints in colors on Strathmore Bristol paper
Each signed in felt-tip pen and numbered 7/20
Dallas Auction Gallery: 23 May 2017
Estimated: USD 60,000 – 80,000
USD 87,500
COMPLETE SET
ANDY WARHOL (American, 1928-1987)
“Gems (set of 4)”, 1978
(Feldman & Schellmann, II.186-189)
The complete portfolio of four screenprints on Strathmore Bristol paper
First three signed and numbered lower left, “17/20 Andy Warhol”
With last (II.189) signed and numbered lower center with the blindstamp of printer
Christie’s New-York: 24 April 2015
Estimated: USD 70,000 – 90,000
USD 87,500
COMPLETE SET
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
Gems, 1978
The complete set of four screenprints in colors (three unique) on Strathmore Bristol paper
Each signed in felt-tip pen and numbered 5/20