WORK IN PROGRESS
Born Robert Clark in New Castle, Indiana in 1928, the artist displayed an early sensibility to graphic signs and the formal language of advertising, later recalling his fascination with a Phillips 66 sign at the service station where his father worked. After moving to New York in 1954, Indiana declared himself to be ‘an American painter of signs.’ Seeking to replicate the satisfaction he derived from his surrounding cultural ephemera, the artist himself explained:
‘It’s always been a matter of impact; the relationship of color to color and word to shape and word to complete piece … I’m most concerned with the force of its impact. I’ve never found attractive things that are delicate or soft or subtly nuanced’
Robert Clark burst upon the New York art scene in 1954 and settled at 31 Coenties Slip in Manhattan, joining a small group of artists that included Ellsworth Kelly, Agnes Martin, Lenore Tawney and Jack Youngerman. These artists were bound by a commitment to form and the relationships between space, curves and edges in abstract shapes. Coenties Slip proved a fertile environment for these artists who found inspiration in the raw, industrial materials and commercial signage that were so prevalent in the area.
LOVE
First conceived in 1965 as a Christmas card design commissioned by the Museum of Modern Art, New York, LOVE has since become an instantly recognizable iconography. An emblem of the 1960s idealism, Indiana’s masterful graphics align with the giants of Pop art such as Ed Ruscha and Roy Lichtenstein, embracing the ideas of repetition and seriality that came to define the era. The present work, casted in an edition of 6, is executed in its classic red color, one of the most striking renditions of this iconic series.
ROBERT INDIANA WITH HIS LOVE SCULPTURE IN CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK CITY, IN 1971.
IMAGE: © GETTY IMAGES / JACK MITCHELL
ARTWORK: © 2024 MORGAN ART FOUNDATION LTD. / ARTISTS RIGHTS SOCIETY (ARS), NEW YORK
Throughout his career, Indiana has been fascinated by the importance of signs within American visual culture and their ability to encapsulate intangible meanings, desires, and emotions through language reduced to the subtle placement of minimal but straightforward and accessible words. Realizing the potential of language in graphic art, Indiana sought to emulate this simplicity of transmission within his own work, condensing his personal experiences into contemporary signage. LOVE is the first instance in which the artist edited the subject of his art to a single word, yet the immediacy and directness of this commanding message does not preclude a wealth of possible meanings and connotations; its simplicity belies that signs are never neutral, nor empty.
Often looking at commercial signage for inspiration, the present work was inspired by the stenciled lettering seen on the packaging and billboards of Indiana’s childhood. Having spent his early years moving from town to town and spending much of that time on the road, the road-signs of the highways left a lasting impression on the artist. Looking at the ways graphic letters and numbers acquire beauty as shapes and silhouettes when separated from their meaning, LOVE brings to focus the weight, balance and shape of each letter as they are neatly stacked on top of each other in a bold topographical design. The expressive red is used here not just for its symbolic association with love and passion but, when combined with Indiana’s typeface, graphic design and simplified stacked format, to communicate the universal emotion tied to a single word in an immediate and direct way, becoming an icon of contemporary art in the process.
The word ‘Love’ initially surfaced in Indiana’s work in his 1958 poem ‘Wherefore the Punctuation of the Heart’ which revealed his admiration of E.E. Cummings and Gertrude Stein. Its first appearance in painted form came six years later when the artist traced ‘Love is God’ onto a diamond shaped canvas, inverting a common church motto of his youth.
“In a sense, I got down to the subject matter of my work … the subject is defined by its expression in the word itself … LOVE is purely a skeleton of all that word has meant in all the erotic and religious aspects of the theme, and to bring it down to the actual structure of calligraphy [is to reduce it] to the bare bone.”
A commission from the Museum of Modern Art followed for a painting to be reproduced on a greetings card. Indiana had by then distilled his concept and its image to its essence and presented a canvas comprising the four red letters of ‘Love’ stacked against a blue and green background. Rejecting linear display, the artist assembled the word in a square block, with one letter in each quadrant.
An iconic subject of both Robert Indiana’s body of work and the Pop art movement as a whole, the artist’s LOVE series has in effect become its own artistic phenomenon. These four letters arranged in a grid is “almost a universal signifier” and “has become a culturally owned image that no longer signifies its author,” said Susan Elizabeth in her biography on the artist. Indiana’s LOVE has achieved global recognition since its conception in 1966, and versions of the work have been installed in esteemed public and private collections across the United States, as well as in Canada, Europe, South America, Asia, and Israel. Like the monumental sculpture which currently welcomes visitors to the artist’s first major exhibition in the United Kingdom in Yorkshire Sculpture Park, which opened earlier this year, LOVEillustrates Indiana’s use of text-based imagery as a way to transcend the boundaries of Minimalism and Pop art, resulting in a universal symbol that has become timeless.
Robert Indiana with his LOVE sculpture in Central Park, New York City, 1971, Image: Jack Mitchell / Getty Images, Artwork: © 2022 Morgan Art Foundation Ltd./ Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
The immediate recognizability of Indiana’s LOVE is even more powerful in the age of new media and the incredible potential of image circulation. As Aaron Ott noted, “LOVE is capable of holding meaning in a variety of histories. It was created in the shadow of hippie culture but powerful enough to escape that orbit in order to resonate in numerous contemporary and personalized contexts.” LOVE crystallizes many of the major themes that Robert Indiana has investigated throughout his career, and one of the most fascinating aspects of this work is its ability to remain timeless and contemporary at the same time.
A cardinal symbol of Pop art, LOVE is a quintessential example of Robert Indiana’s ability to use text and language to transcend conventional distinctions between Minimalism, Pop art, and modernism. Indiana orientates the four letters that constitute the word over a strict cruciform axis, the gridding of which he only jeopardizes with the playful energy emitted from the tilted “O”. Radiating with its vibrant and distinct color combination, LOVE serves as an homage to the artist’s father who worked at a Phillips 66 gas station in the Midwestern United States during the Great Depression: at once deeply personal and emblematic of the American experience, the work echoes the red logo set against a cerulean Indiana sky. Indiana’s LOVE has achieved global recognition since its conception in 1966, and versions of the work have been installed in public and private collections across the United States as well as in Canada, Europe, South America, Asia, and Israel. Ascribed to the sculpture’s vibrant palette and instantaneous impact, LOVE has become an iconic Pop motif that takes its place in the pantheon of imagery alongside Andy Warhol’s soup cans and Roy Lichtenstein’s Ben-Day dots.
Robert Indiana in North Haven, Connecticut, 1970. Photographed by Tom Rummler,
Artwork © 2021 Morgan Art Foundation Ltd./Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Perhaps what makes the work so evocative is its perennial ability to remain timeless. The imagery was already identified as emblematic of the Pop movement when The Museum of Modern Art in New York selected the image for their annual Christmas card in 1965. As Aaron Ott noted, “LOVE is capable of holding meaning in a variety of histories. It was created in the shadow of hippie culture but powerful enough to escape that orbit in order to resonate in numerous contemporary and personalized contexts.” LOVE crystallizes many of the major themes that Robert Indiana has investigated throughout his career, and one of the most fascinating aspects of this work is its ability to remain timeless and contemporary at the same time. More than 50 years has passed since its conception, and it is clear that having served as inspiration whether directly or indirectly to a younger generation of artists, Indiana’s LOVE persists in a profound manner.
Auction Market Overview
COMING SOON
Top Lots
#1. Love Red/Blue, 1990
Christie’s New-York: 12 May 2011
Estimated: USD 2,000,000 – 3,000,000
USD 4,114,500
Robert Indiana (b. 1928) , Love Red/Blue | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (b. 1928)
Love Red/Blue, 1990
Painted aluminum
144x144x72 inches (366x366x183 cm)
Stamped with signature, number and date ‘ROBERT INDIANA 1/3 (c) 1990’ (on the inside of the edge of the “E”)
Executed in 1990, this work is number one from an edition of three
#2. Love, 1966-1998
Christie’s New-York: 14 November 2007
Estimated: USD 1,000,000 – 1,500,000
USD 3,513,000
Robert Indiana (b. 1928) , Love | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (b. 1928)
Love, 1966-1998
Painted aluminum
144x144x72 inches (365.8 x 365.8 x 182.9 cm)
Stamped with signature, number and date ‘1966-1998 R. INDIANA 3/03’ (on the serif of the E)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is number three from an edition of three
#3. LOVE, 1966-1998
Christie’s New-York: 16 November 2018
Estimated: USD 1,000,000 – 1,500,000
USD 1,872,500
Robert Indiana (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1998
Polychromed aluminum
96x96x48 inches (243.8 x 243.8 x 121.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ‘© 1966-1998 R INDIANA AP 1/2’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is an artist’s proof from an edition of five plus two artist’s proofs
#4. Love (Blue/Red), 1966-1999
Sotheby’s New-York: 14 November 2012
Estimated: USD 1,000,000 – 1,500,000
USD 1,706,500
ROBERT INDIANA
Love (Blue/Red), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
96x96x48 inches (243.8 x 243.8 x 121.9 cm)
Number 2 from an edition of 5 plus 2 artist’s proofs
#6. LOVE (Red Outside Red Inside), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s London: 26 June 2024
Estimated: GBP 400,000 – 600,000
GBP 1,260,000 / USD 1,597,680
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Red Outside Red Inside), 1966-2000
Painted aluminum
72x72x36 inches (182.9 x 182.9 x 91.4 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, dated 1966-2000 and numbered 3/6 (towards the base)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000, this work is number 3 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
2025 Auction Results
#1. LOVE (Red Blue Green), 1966-1999
Sotheby’s New-York: 26 September 2025
Estimated: USD 700,000 – 1,000,000
USD 914,400
LOVE (Red Blue Green) | Contemporary Curated | 2025 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Red Blue Green), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
96 1/8 x 96 1/8 x 48 inches (244 x 244 x 121.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number 2/5 and date 1966-1999 (on the inside of the letter “E”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999
This work is number 2 from an edition of 5 plus 2 artist’s proofs
#2. Love-Blue-Green, 1966/1997-1999
Phillips London: 18 October 2025
Estimated: GBP 180,000 – 250,000
GBP 490,200 / USD 656,870
Robert Indiana Modern & Contemporary Art Day Sale
Polychrome aluminum
This work is number 6 from an edition of 8 plus 4 artist’s proofs
#3. LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-2000
Phillips New-York: 21 November 2025
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 541,800
Robert Indiana Modern & Contemporary Art Day Sale, Morning Session
Polychromed aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name
Number and date “(c) 1966–2000 R INDIANA 8/8” on the lower interior edge of the “V”
Conceived in 1966 and fabricated in 2000, this work is number 8 from an edition of 8 plus 4 artist’s proofs
#4. LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides), 1966-2000
Christie’s New-York: 15 May 2025
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 529,200
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides) | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides), 1966-2000
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1966-2000 R INDIANA 5⁄6’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000
This work is number five from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs and two hors-commerce
#5. LOVE (Gold/Blue), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s Paris: 8 July 2025
Estimated: EUR 200,000 – 300,000
EUR 304,800 / USD 357,330
LOVE (Gold/Blue) | Modern & Contemporary Discoveries | 2025 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Gold/Blue), 1966-2000
Polychrome aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm)
Signed, numbered AP 2/4 and dated 1966-2000 (on the right edge of the “V”)
This work is number two of four artist’s proofs, set aside from the edition of eight
#6. The American LOVE (White Blue Red), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 29 September 2025
Estimated: HKD 1,200,000 – 2,000,000
HKD 1,651,000 / USD 212,210
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
The American LOVE (White Blue Red), 1966-2000
Polychromed aluminum
17 7/8 x 17 7/8 x 9 inches (45.5 x 45.5 x 23 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, date 1966-2000, number 6/8 and fabricator’s copyright (at the bottom)
This work is number 6 from an edition of 8 plus 4 artist’s proofs
Lots Passed
LOVE (Red/Blue), 1966-2000
K Auction Seoul: 29 October 2025
Estimated: KRW 560,000,000 – 1,070,000,000
USD 390,000 – 750,000
PASSED
October Auction 2025 Lot.77 Result :: KA
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Red/Blue), 1966-2000
Polychrome Aluminum
36x19x36 inches (91.4 x 45.7 x 91.4 cm)
Stamped (c) 1966-2000 R. INDIANA 6/6 on the lower interior edge of the letter “E”
AMOR (Red Yellow), 1998
K Auction Seoul: 24 September 2025
Estimated: KRW 250,000,000 – 550,000,000
PASSED
September Auction 2025 Lot.86 Result :: KA
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
AMOR (Red Yellow), 1998
Polychrome aluminum
Edition 6/8
18x9x18 inches (45.7 x 22.9 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1998 R INDIANA 6/8’
On the lower interior edge of the letter “R”
LOVE (Green Outside, Blue Inside), 1966-2000
K Auction Seoul: 24 September 2025
Estimated: KRW 300,000,000 – 550,000,000
PASSED
September Auction 2025 Lot.87 Result :: KA
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Green Outside, Blue Inside), 1966-2000
Polychrome aluminum
Edition 4/8
18x9x18 inches (45.7 x 22.9 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1966-2000 R INDIANA 4/8’
On the lower interior edge of the letter “V”
LOVE (Red/Blue), 2000
K Auction Seoul: 20 August 2025
Estimated: KRW 570,000,000 – 1,040,000,000
PASSED
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Red/Blue), 2000
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped (c) 1966-2000 R. INDIANA 6/6′ on the lower interior edge of the letter “E”
THE AMERICAN LOVE (White/Blue/Red), 2000
Seoul Auction: 27 May 2025
Estimated: KRW 280,000,000 – 400,000,000
PASSED
ROBERT INDIANA
THE AMERICAN LOVE (White/Blue/Red), 2000
Polychrome aluminum
18x9x18 inches (45.7 x 22.9 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped (c) 1966-2000 R. INDIANA 6/6′ on the lower interior edge of the letter “E”
Lots Withdrawn
LOVE Wall, 2007
Phillips New-York: 13 May 2025
Estimated: USD 700,000 – 1,000,000
WITHDRAWN
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE Wall, 2007
Steel on painted aluminum
81 1/4 x 74 x 27 inches (206.4 x 188 x 68.6 cm)
Signed, number 2 from an edition of 3 plus 2 artist’s proofs
2024 Auction Results
#1. LOVE (Red Outside Red Inside), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s London: 26 June 2024
Estimated: GBP 400,000 – 600,000
GBP 1,260,000 / USD 1,597,680
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Red Outside Red Inside), 1966-2000
Painted aluminum
72x72x36 inches (182.9 x 182.9 x 91.4 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, dated 1966-2000 and numbered 3/6 (towards the base)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000, this work is number 3 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
#2. LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides), 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 17 May 2024
Estimated: USD 1,000,000 – 1,500,000
USD 1,197,000
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides) | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
96x96x48 inches (243.8 x 243.8 x 121.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 3/5’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number three from an edition of five plus two artist’s proofs
#3. LOVE (Red Outside Blue Inside), 1966-1998
Christie’s New-York: 17 May 2024
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 882,000
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Outside Blue Inside) | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Outside Blue Inside), 1966-1998
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 6/6’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is number six from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs and two hors commerce
#4. LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside), 1966-1997
Sotheby’s New-York: 21 November 2024
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 840,000
LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside) | Contemporary Day Auction | 2024 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside), 1966-1997
Polychromed aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, date 1966-1997 and number 1/8 (on the outside of the ‘V’)
Conceived in 1966 and fabricated in 1997, this work is number 1 from an edition of 8 plus 4 artist’s proofs
#5. LOVE, 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 22 November 2024
Estimated: USD 300,000 – 500,000
USD 378,000
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1999
Cor-ten steel
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 6⁄6’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number six from an edition of six plus two artist’s proofs
#6. LOVE, 1966-1998
Christie’s London: 10 October 2024
Estimated: GBP 150,000 – 200,000
GBP 189,000 / USD 246,955
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1998
Polychromed aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date ‘© 1966-1998 R INDIANA 7⁄8’ (on the inside edge of the “V”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is number seven from an edition of eight plus four artist’s proofs
#7. LOVE (Red/Blue/Green), 1966-1999
K Auction Seoul: 26 June 2024
Estimated: KRW 290,000,000 – 400,000,000
KRW 333,500,000 / USD 239,455
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red/Blue/Green), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.6 x 45.6 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ”© 1966-1999 R INDIANA AP 3/4′
(on the inside edge of the “V”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is an artist’s proof outside from an edition of eight
2023 Auction Results
#1. LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 10 November 2023
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 957,600
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides) | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date ”© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 6⁄6′ (on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number six from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs
#2. LOVE, 1966-1999
Christie’s London: 14 October 2023
Estimated: GBP 170,000 – 250,000
GBP 201,600 / USD 244,440
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.6 x 45.6 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ”© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 7⁄8′ (on the inside edge of the “V”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number seven from an edition of eight plus four artist’s proofs
2022 Auction Results
#1. LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-1999
Christie’s London: 28 June 2022
Estimated: GBP 300,000 – 500,000
GBP 756,000 / USD 927,340
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides) | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number, date and foundry mark ”© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 5/6′
(on the inside edge of the “E”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number five from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs
#2. LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides), 1966-1999
Phillips New-York: 19 May 2022
Estimated: USD 600,000 – 800,000
USD 724,500
Robert Indiana – 20th Century & Contemp… Lot 126 May 2022 | Phillips
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides), 1966-1999
Polychromed aluminum
72x72x36 inches (182.9 x 182.9 x 91.4 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date “© 1966–1999 R INDIANA 3/6” and the Milgo/Bufkin foundry mark on the lower interior edge of the E
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number 3 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
#3. LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s New-York: 17 November 2022
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 504,000
LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides) | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides), 1966-2000
Polychromed aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped ©1966-2000 R INDIANA AP 3/4 (on the lower left interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000, this work is artist’s proof outside of an edition of 6
#4. LOVE (Blue Faces Red Sides), 1966-1998
Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 15 December 2022
Estimated: HKD 3,200,000 – 4,500,000
HKD 3,528,000 / USD 455,115
ROBERT INDIANA (b.1928)
LOVE (Blue Faces Red Sides), 1966-1998
Polychromed aluminum
35 7/8 x 35 7/8 x 18 inches (91.2 x 91.2 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, date 1966-1998, number AP 2/4 and fabricator’s copyright
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is artist’s proof 2 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
#5. Ahava, 1977-2021
Sotheby’s New-York: 18 May 2022
Estimated: USD 250,000 – 350,000
USD 315,000
Ahava | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
Ahava, 1977-2021
Cor-ten steel
37x36x18 inches (94 x 91.4 by 45.7 cm)
Stamped ©1977-2021 R INDIANA 1/6 (on the lower exterior edge of the ‘V’)
Conceived in 1977 and cast in 2021, this work is number 1 from an edition of 6, plus 2 artist’s proofs.
#6. LOVE, 1966-2001
Christie’s New-York: 13 May 2022
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 302,400
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-2001
Polychromed aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number, date and foundry mark ‘© 1966-2001 R Indiana 4⁄8’
(on the inside edge of the “V”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2001, this work is number four from an edition of eight plus four artist’s proofs
2021 Auction Results
#1. Love (Purple/ Red), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s New-York: 19 November 2021
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 794,400
Love | Contemporary Day Auction | 2021 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
Love (Purple/ Red), 1966-2000
Polychromed aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 44.7 cm)
Stamped 1966-2000R INDIANA AP 1/4 (on the interior)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000, this work is artist’s proof number 1 from an edition of 6, plus 4 artist’s proofs
#2. LOVE (Blue Faces Red Sides), 1966-1998
Phillips New-York: 18 November 2021
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 567,000
Robert Indiana – 20th Century & Co… Lot 139 November 2021 | Phillips
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Blue Faces Red Sides), 1966-1998
Polychromed aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and the Milgo Bufkin, Brooklyn mark “© 1966–1998 R INDIANA AP2/4” along the lower interior edge of the E
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is artist’s proof 2 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
#3. LOVE, 1966
Christie’s London: 25 March 2021
Estimated: GBP 120,000 – 180,000
GBP 375,000 / USD 514,215
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966
Polished aluminum
11 7/8 x 11 7/8 x 5 7/8 inches (30.2 x 30.2 x 15 cm)
Incised with the artist’s name, number and date ‘Indiana 66 2/6’ and stamped with the foundry mark
(on the underside)
Executed in 1966, this work is number two from an edition of six
#4. LOVE (Gold Faces Red Sides), 1966-2002
Phillips New-York: 24 June 2021
Estimated: USD 250,000 – 350,000
USD 315,000
Robert Indiana – 20th Century & Contem… Lot 149 June 2021 | Phillips
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Gold Faces Red Sides), 1966-2002
Polychromed aluminum
17 5/8 x 17 7/8 x 9 inches (44.8 x 45.4 x 22.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date “© 1966–2002 R INDIANA 8/8” and the foundry mark on the lower interior edge of the E
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2002, this work is number 8 from an edition of 8
2020 Auction Results
#1. LOVE (Blue/Red), 1966-1998
Christie’s New-York: 7 October 2020
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 625,000
Robert Indiana (1928-2018), LOVE (Blue/Red) | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Blue/Red), 1966-1998
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number, date and foundry mark
‘© 1966-1998 R INDIANA 6/6’ (on the inside edge of the “E”)
This work is number six from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs
#2. LOVE, 1966-1998
Sotheby’s New-York: 17 November 2020
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 540,300
LOVE | Contemporary Art Day Auction | 2020 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE, 1966-1998
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, date © 1966-1998 and number AP 2/4 on the interior of the letter E
This work is artist’s proof number 2 from an edition of 6, plus 4 artist’s proofs
#3. LOVE, 1966-2000
Sotheby’s New-York: 14 May 2020
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 500,000
ROBERT INDIANA | LOVE | Contemporary Art Day: An Online Auction | 2020 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE, 1966-2000
Polychromed aluminum
36x36x18 inches ( 91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, date 1966-2000 and number AP 2/4 on the inside of the ‘E’
This work is artist’s proof number two from an edition of six, plus four artist’s proofs
#4. LOVE, 1966-1999
Christie’s Hong-Kong: 3 December 2020
Estimated: HKD 2,000,000 – 3,000,000
HKD 2,750,000 / USD 354,780
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1999
Painted aluminum sculpture
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with signature, numbered and dated ‘1966-1999 R. INDIANA AP 3/4’ (on the underside)
Edition: 3/4 AP + 6
#5. LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside), 1966-1999
Phillips Hong-Kong: 9 July 2020
Estimated: HKD 1,800,000 – 2,800,000
HKD 2,375,000 / USD 304,790
Robert Indiana 20th Century & Contemporary Art & Design Day Sale
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside), 1966-1999
Painted aluminum
35 7/8 x 35 7/8 x 17 7/8 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped on the lower interior edge of the letter “E”: ‘© 1966–1999 R INDIANA AP 4/4’
This work is artist proof number four from an edition of six plus four artist proofs
#6. LOVE (GOLD FACES – BLUE SIDES), 1966-2002
Sotheby’s London: 21 April 2020
Estimated: GBP 160,000 – 200,000
GBP 225,000 / USD 283,910
ROBERT INDIANA | LOVE (GOLD FACES – BLUE SIDES) | Contemporary Curated | 2020 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (GOLD FACES – BLUE SIDES), 1966-2002
Polychrome aluminum
17 7/8 x 17 7/8 x 9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.8 cm)
Incised with the artist’s signature, date 1966-2002 and numbered 3/8 on the interior edge of the E
This work is number 3 from an edition of 8, plus 4 artist’s proofs
2019 Auction Results
WORK IN PROGRESS
#1. LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside), 1966-1995
Property from the Miles and Shirley Fiterman Collection
Phillips New-York: 13 November 2019
Estimated: USD 800,000 – 1,200,000
USD 890,000
Robert Indiana 20th C. & Contemporary Art Day Sale, Morning Session
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside), 1966-1995
Polychrome aluminum
72x72x36 inches (182.9 x 182.9 x 91.4 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date “© 1995 R INDIANA 3/6” on the lower interior edge of the letter E
This work is number 3 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
#2. Love, 1966-2000
Sotheby’s London: 6 March 2019
Estimated: GBP 550,000 – 750,000
GBP 675,000 / USD 889,615
ROBERT INDIANA
Love, 1966-2000
Painted aluminum
72x72x36 inches (183 x 183 x 91.5 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, dated 1966-2000 and numbered AP 2/4 on the left side of the E
This work is number 2 of 4 artist’s proofs, aside from an edition of 6
#3. Love, 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 27 September 2019
Estimated: USD 300,000 – 500,000
USD 495,000
Robert Indiana (1928-2018), Love | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
Love, 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA AP 4/4’ (lower edge)
This work is the fourth artist’s proof from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs
Love, 1966-1999
Christie’s Paris: 4 June 2019
Estimated: EUR 300,000 – 500,000
EUR 310,000 / USD 348,890
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), Love | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
Love, 1966-1999
Corten steel
35 7/8 x 35 7/8 x 10 1/4 inches (92x92x45 cm)
Dated, numbered, with the signature and the editor’s stamps
‘1966-1999 5/6 ROBERT INDIANA MILGO BROOKLYN NY’ (inside)
This work is number five from an edition of six
2018 Auction Results
#1. LOVE, 1966-1998
Christie’s New-York: 16 November 2018
Estimated: USD 1,000,000 – 1,500,000
USD 1,872,500
Robert Indiana (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1998
Polychromed aluminum
96x96x48 inches (243.8 x 243.8 x 121.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ‘© 1966-1998 R INDIANA AP 1/2’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is an artist’s proof from an edition of five plus two artist’s proofs
#2. Love, 1966-1999
Sotheby’s New-York: 17 May 2018
Estimated: USD 800,000 – 1,200,000
USD 1,071,00
ROBERT INDIANA
Love, 1966-1999
Cor-ten steel
96x96x48 inches (243.8 x 243.8 x 121.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, date ©1966-1999 and number 5/5 on the interior edge of the letter E
This work is number 5 from an edition of 5, plus 2 artist’s proofs
#3. LOVE, 1966-1995
Christie’s New-York: 18 May 2018
Estimated: USD 250,000 – 350,000
USD 396,500
Robert Indiana (B. 1928), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (B. 1928)
LOVE, 1966-1995
Polychrome aluminum
18 x 17 3/4 x 9 inches (45.7 x 45 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, numbered and dated ‘© 1966-1995 R INDIANA 3/8’ (lower interior edge)
This work is number three from an edition of eight
#4. LOVE, 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 1 March 2018
Estimated: USD 220,000 – 280,000
USD 262,500
Robert Indiana (b. 1928), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (b. 1928)
LOVE, 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA AP 4/4’ (lower interior edge)
This work is the fourth of four artist’s proofs aside from an edition of eight
Love (144-inch)
Love Red/Blue, 1990
Christie’s New-York: 12 May 2011
Estimated: USD 2,000,000 – 3,000,000
USD 4,114,500
Robert Indiana (b. 1928) , Love Red/Blue | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (b. 1928)
Love Red/Blue, 1990
Painted aluminum
144x144x72 inches (366x366x183 cm)
Stamped with signature, number and date ‘ROBERT INDIANA 1/3 (c) 1990’ (on the inside of the edge of the “E”)
Executed in 1990, this work is number one from an edition of three
Monumental in scale, ubiquitous in recognition value, and emblematic for American Pop Art culture, Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE sculptures are a global phenomena. LOVE (Red/Blue), conceived in 1966 and executed in 1990, with its vivid, hard-edged stencil-style contours and dazzling unmodulated patina, shares its scale and dual color with that on New York’s 6th Avenue and 55th Street. Conceived as a serial process, versions of which exist in a variety of materials and sizes, none can match the visual impact and pulsating high-keyed chromatism of the present version. Both a formal abstract configuration and a shaped poem, its dual nature as both imperative utterance and artwork, what Indiana himself described as a ‘verbal-visual” act, fires an extraordinary sonic and optical intensity. The letters themselves, nestled, rubbing together, insinuate a physicality and tactility that resonate with the intended affect. As a visual image, it is emblematic of a time and place in American socio-political history even as it derives from a torrent of art-historical influences. Finding one’s artistic style in 1950s New York would be a struggle for any artist and Indiana acknowledges as much when of his hard-edged reductive geometry for LOVE.
Love (96-inch)
LOVE (Red Blue Green), 1966-1999
Sotheby’s New-York: 26 September 2025
Estimated: USD 700,000 – 1,000,000
USD 914,400
LOVE (Red Blue Green) | Contemporary Curated | 2025 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Red Blue Green), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
96 1/8 x 96 1/8 x 48 inches (244 x 244 x 121.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number 2/5 and date 1966-1999 (on the inside of the letter “E”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999
This work is number 2 from an edition of 5 plus 2 artist’s proofs
LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides), 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 17 May 2024
Estimated: USD 1,000,000 – 1,500,000
USD 1,197,000
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides) | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
96x96x48 inches (243.8 x 243.8 x 121.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 3/5’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number three from an edition of five plus two artist’s proofs
LOVE, 1966-1998
Christie’s New-York: 16 November 2018
Estimated: USD 1,000,000 – 1,500,000
USD 1,872,500
Robert Indiana (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1998
Polychromed aluminum
96x96x48 inches (243.8 x 243.8 x 121.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ‘© 1966-1998 R INDIANA AP 1/2’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is an artist’s proof from an edition of five plus two artist’s proofs
Love, 1966-1999
Sotheby’s New-York: 17 May 2018
Estimated: USD 800,000 – 1,200,000
USD 1,071,00
ROBERT INDIANA
Love, 1966-1999
Cor-ten steel
96x96x48 inches (243.8 x 243.8 x 121.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, date ©1966-1999 and number 5/5 on the interior edge of the letter E
This work is number 5 from an edition of 5, plus 2 artist’s proofs
Robert Indiana’s Love is the defining image of Pop art and Contemporary American culture. The bold, eye-catching text-driven design has become Indiana’s legacy. Throughout the artist’s life and career, he has looked to signs as inspiration, utilizing their dual simplicity and profound ability to capture meaning, desire and emotion. The classic compositional arrangement of the letters L. O. V. E. was designed for a Christmas card commissioned by The Museum of Modern Art in 1965. Even prior to this, Indiana began to explore the potential of the omnipotent four letter word in a 1958 poem, ‘Wherefore the Punctuation of the Heart,’ revealing his admiration of e.e. cummings and Gertrude Stein.
“The ‘LOVE Sculpture’ is the culmination of ten years of work based on the original premise that the word is an appropriated and usable element of art, just as Picasso and the Cubists made use of it at the beginning of the century, which evolved inevitably, in both my ‘LOVE’ paintings and sculpture, into the concept that the word is also a fit and viable subject for art.”
While Indiana’s Love was initially conceptualized and executed in a two-dimensional format, it is its sculptural iteration that has achieved such an iconic status in Indiana’s oeuvre. The artist fabricated his first cor-ten steel Love sculpture in 1970 for the Indianapolis Museum of Art, and Love has been a staple of museum and institutional collections worldwide ever since. The present work carries on this legacy, culminating in a colossal 96 inches, enveloping its environment in its universal message.
Growing up in depression era Indiana, the artist spent the first 17 years of his life moving from home to home as his parents searched for employment. The family car became the lasting structure of Indiana’s childhood, and his experiences within that car a lasting influence on his work. The hard-edged, flat forms and stenciled words and phrases of Indiana’s oeuvre share aesthetic characteristics with roadside signs and signals. These signs became a fixation for Indiana, who admired their ability to encapsulate intangible meanings, desires, and emotions in a straightforward and accessible presentation. In his artistic production, Indiana took the vernacular of signs and expanded it, forging connections with conceptualism and Pop art while keeping the immediacy and legibility of his referents. Love brings to fruition the architectural weight of the compositional form through its bold typographical design and variegated patina. The stacked steel letters with the signature slanted O commit to a square format in this impressive outdoor sculpture, measuring 6 feet tall. The linguistic simplicity and striking geometry have become part of our cultural lexicon for one of the most complex core emotions of humanity.
Love (Blue/Red), 1966-1999
Sotheby’s New-York: 14 November 2012
Estimated: USD 1,000,000 – 1,500,000
USD 1,706,500
ROBERT INDIANA
Love (Blue/Red), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
96x96x48 inches (243.8 x 243.8 x 121.9 cm)
Number 2 from an edition of 5 plus 2 artist’s proofs
Love (72-inch)
LOVE (Red Outside Red Inside), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s London: 26 June 2024
Estimated: GBP 400,000 – 600,000
GBP 1,260,000 / USD 1,597,680
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Red Outside Red Inside), 1966-2000
Painted aluminum
72x72x36 inches (182.9 x 182.9 x 91.4 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, dated 1966-2000 and numbered 3/6 (towards the base)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000, this work is number 3 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides), 1966-1999
Phillips New-York: 19 May 2022
Estimated: USD 600,000 – 800,000
USD 724,500
Robert Indiana – 20th Century & Contemp… Lot 126 May 2022 | Phillips
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides), 1966-1999
Polychromed aluminum
72x72x36 inches (182.9 x 182.9 x 91.4 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date “© 1966–1999 R INDIANA 3/6” and the Milgo/Bufkin foundry mark on the lower interior edge of the E
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number 3 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside), 1966-1995
Property from the Miles and Shirley Fiterman Collection
Phillips New-York: 13 November 2019
Estimated: USD 800,000 – 1,200,000
USD 890,000
Robert Indiana 20th C. & Contemporary Art Day Sale, Morning Session
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside), 1966-1995
Polychrome aluminum
72x72x36 inches (182.9 x 182.9 x 91.4 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date “© 1995 R INDIANA 3/6” on the lower interior edge of the letter E
This work is number 3 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
A cardinal symbol of Pop art, LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside) is a quintessential example of Robert Indiana’s ability to use text and language to transcend conventional distinctions between Minimalism, Pop art, and modernism. Indiana orientates the four letters that constitute the word over a strict cruciform axis, the gridding of which he only jeopardizes with the playful energy emitted from the tilted “O”. Radiating in cerulean and carmine, LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside) serves as an homage to the artist’s father who worked at a Phillips 66 gas station in the Midwestern United States during the Great Depression: at once deeply personal and emblematic of the American experience, the work echoes the red logo set against a blue Indiana sky. A fundamental component of Miles and Shirley Fiterman’s collection of exceptional examples of Pop art, Indiana’s LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside) has achieved global recognition since its conception in 1966, and versions of the work have been installed in public and private collections across the United States as well as in Canada, Europe, South America, Asia, and Israel. Ascribed to the sculpture’s vibrant palette and instantaneous impact, LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside) has become an iconic Pop motif that takes its place in the pantheon of imagery alongside Andy Warhol’s soup cans and Roy Lichtenstein’s Ben-Day dots.
By the mid 1960s, the New York art world was experiencing an unprecedented change of artistic tides as Minimalism was rapidly gaining popularity and the first wave of Pop art was nearing the end of its reign. Indiana championed the duality that characterized the climate with the conception of LOVE, marrying the two movements in the visual immediacy of the work, which is reminiscent of the bold, arresting quality of billboards and advertisements. The word “love” appears frequently within his oeuvre, as evidenced by the emergence of its iconography in a series of poems he composed in 1958 before its appearance in his seminal paintings Four Star Love, 1961, Portland Museum of Art, Maine and Love is God, 1964. It was these explorations in two-dimension that laid the groundwork for Indiana to propel the composition into the third dimension.
“I like to work on a square canvas, since the way I put the letters down, it is the most economical, the most dynamic way to put four letters on a square canvas. This is how the LOVE came about…”
By transposing the abstract concept of “love” into a tangible three-dimensional object that can be seen and touched, Indiana has engaged with Conceptualism, Pop, and Minimalism.
LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside) is also denotative of Indiana’s investigation of modernist themes through a Pop lens. According to the artist, the “’LOVE Sculpture’ is the culmination of ten years of work based on the original premise that the word is an appropriated and usable element of art, just as Picasso and the Cubists made use of it at the beginning of the century, which evolved inevitably, in both my “LOVE” paintings and sculpture, into the concept that the word is also a fit and viable subject for art” (Robert Indiana, Art New: New York, vol. 1, no. 3, March 1969, n.p.). The sculpture can be interpreted as a conceptual allusion to the manipulation of wordplay at the hands of the Dadaists and Cubists. Just as the “JOU” in Pablo Picasso’s Still Life with Chair Caning, 1911-1912 may be a witty pun on the French word “jouer” (to play) and the popular Parisian newspaper Le Journal, the word “love” implies many connotations, including ones that are amorous, platonic, spiritual, and cultural. As such, LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside) operates not only within the realm of Pop art, but as a broader reflection on the preoccupation with language and word play in modern art.
Perhaps what makes the work so evocative is its perennial ability to remain timeless. The imagery was already identified as emblematic of the Pop movement when The Museum of Modern Art in New York selected the image for their annual Christmas card in 1965. LOVE (Blue Outside Red Inside) crystallizes many of the major themes that Robert Indiana has investigated throughout his career and one of the most fascinating aspects of this work is it’s ability to remain timeless and contemporary at the same time. More than 50 years has passed since it’s conception and it is clear that having served as inspiration whether directly or indirectly to a younger generation of artists Indiana’s LOVE persists in a profound manner.
Love, 1966-2000
Sotheby’s London: 6 March 2019
Estimated: GBP 550,000 – 750,000
GBP 675,000 / USD 889,615
ROBERT INDIANA
Love, 1966-2000
Painted aluminum
72x72x36 inches (183 x 183 x 91.5 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, dated 1966-2000 and numbered AP 2/4 on the left side of the E
This work is number 2 of 4 artist’s proofs, aside from an edition of 6
Two sets of gigantic aluminum letters piled on top of one another, their color the crimson of passion and desire, together forming the word which has enthralled and inspired since time immemorial: love. Instantly recognizable, Robert Indiana’s LOVE is both exemplary of the artist’s oeuvre and an icon of Pop Art. Beyond the deceptively simplistic premise of LOVE lie layers of semiotic meaning, decipherable only through an understanding of the artist and his era. Despite his reluctance to be considered a core member of Pop Art, Indiana’s talent for condensing complex theoretical thought into striking sculptural form marks him out as one of the most pre-eminent artists of the genre. Growing up moving from town to town until the age of seventeen, Indiana spent much time on the road, with nothing more permanent than the family car to call home. The road signs by the motorways were constant companions to the boy on his travels and left a lasting impression. Towering above the highway, they provided direction to the pseudo-nomadic family, instilling in their migrations a sense of purpose and guiding them along their journey through life, attributing the proliferation of signs to the peculiar cultural environment of the United States.
“In Europe trees grow everywhere; in America, signs grow like trees; signs are more common than trees”
On the surface, LOVE is a dedication to human passion, desire and spirituality, qualities which bypass national or cultural borders. Seen in the context of the 1960s, LOVE stands as testament to the plethora of peace and pride parades which culminated in the 1967 Summer of Love. Yet to Indiana himself, the message of the sculpture is neither political nor sexual, but spiritual. Brought up in the Christian heartland, Indiana recalls seeing the message ‘God is Love’ spelt out in every church. A 1968 rendition of LOVE takes the form of a crucifix canvas of blue, on which the design is repeatedly painted in red. The religious undertone of the design, deeply personal to the artist, would be hidden under layers of other interpretations in the design’s transformation into sculpture.
The physical form of the sculpture, with its bold, striking simplicity, represents Pop Art’s revolt against the stifling academicism of Greenbergian Abstract-Expressionism. Whereas Greenberg’s artists harked back to the age of Parisian salon and academies, Pop artists like Indiana, Warhol and Lichtenstein embraced the industrial logic of the production line permeating commercial mass-consumer culture. The genesis of LOVE followed precisely the logic of industrial production. Originally envisaged for a Museum of Modern Art Christmas card, Indiana’s design has been reimagined many times as paintings before being adopted in its famous sculptural form in 1970 at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Since then, iterations of the sculpture in a plethora of colours and materials have appeared in museums and city centers across the world. Far from side-lining the cultural condition of late industrial society, Indiana ingeniously appropriated the mass proliferation of designs to spread his message to a wider public. Like the road signs of Indiana’s youth, LOVE is meant to be read and interpreted by everyone. Erected in the hearts of metropolises around the globe, Indiana’s towering LOVE sculptures stand as shrines to the achievements of our contemporary world, reminding us of our links to one another, despite differences in politics, sexuality and religion. This celebration of love is by no means a blind optimism. The sculpture’s letter O is slanted and seems to about to topple over, stressing precariousness of our bonds and the need for these connections to be continuously maintained.
Love, 1966-1998
Sotheby’s New-York: 17 November 2017
Estimated: USD 700,000 – 900,000
USD 831,000
ROBERT INDIANA
Love, 1966-1998
Cor-ten steel
72x72x36 inches (183 x 183 x 91.5 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, date ©1966-1998 and number 3/6 on the interior edge of the letter E
Conceived in 1966 and cast in 1998, this work is number 3 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
Love (36-inch)
LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides), 1966-2000
Christie’s New-York: 15 May 2025
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 529,200
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides) | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Faces Blue Sides), 1966-2000
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1966-2000 R INDIANA 5⁄6’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000
This work is number five from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs and two hors-commerce
LOVE (Red Outside Blue Inside), 1966-1998
Christie’s New-York: 17 May 2024
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 882,000
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Outside Blue Inside) | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Outside Blue Inside), 1966-1998
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 6/6’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is number six from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs and two hors commerce
LOVE, 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 22 November 2024
Estimated: USD 300,000 – 500,000
USD 378,000
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1999
Cor-ten steel
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and fabricator mark ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 6⁄6’
(on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number six from an edition of six plus two artist’s proofs
LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 10 November 2023
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 957,600
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides) | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date ”© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 6⁄6′ (on the interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number six from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs
LOVE (Blue Faces Red Sides), 1966-1998
Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 15 December 2022
Estimated: HKD 3,200,000 – 4,500,000
HKD 3,528,000 / USD 455,115
ROBERT INDIANA (b.1928)
LOVE (Blue Faces Red Sides), 1966-1998
Polychromed aluminum
35 7/8 x 35 7/8 x 18 inches (91.2 x 91.2 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, date 1966-1998, number AP 2/4 and fabricator’s copyright
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is artist’s proof 2 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s New-York: 17 November 2022
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 504,000
LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides) | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Violet Faces Red Sides), 1966-2000
Polychromed aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped ©1966-2000 R INDIANA AP 3/4 (on the lower left interior edge of the ‘E’)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000, this work is artist’s proof outside of an edition of 6
LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-1999
Christie’s London: 28 June 2022
Estimated: GBP 300,000 – 500,000
GBP 756,000 / USD 927,340
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides) | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number, date and foundry mark ”© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 5/6′
(on the inside edge of the “E”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number five from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs
LOVE (Blue Faces Red Sides), 1966-1998
Phillips New-York: 18 November 2021
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 567,000
Robert Indiana – 20th Century & Co… Lot 139 November 2021 | Phillips
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Blue Faces Red Sides), 1966-1998
Polychromed aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number, date and the Milgo Bufkin, Brooklyn mark “© 1966–1998 R INDIANA AP2/4” along the lower interior edge of the E
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is artist’s proof 2 from an edition of 6 plus 4 artist’s proofs
Love (Purple/ Red), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s New-York: 19 November 2021
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 794,400
Love | Contemporary Day Auction | 2021 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
Love (Purple/ Red), 1966-2000
Polychromed aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 44.7 cm)
Stamped 1966-2000R INDIANA AP 1/4 (on the interior)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2000, this work is artist’s proof number 1 from an edition of 6, plus 4 artist’s proofs
LOVE (Blue/Red), 1966-1998
Christie’s New-York: 7 October 2020
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 625,000
Robert Indiana (1928-2018), LOVE (Blue/Red) | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Blue/Red), 1966-1998
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number, date and foundry mark
‘© 1966-1998 R INDIANA 6/6’ (on the inside edge of the “E”)
This work is number six from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs
Impressive in scale, Robert Indiana’s vibrant blue and fire-engine red LOVE sculpture is one of the most celebrated and eye-catching works of the artist’s famed oeuvre. An iconic statement spanning global recognition, LOVE transforms text to three dimensional shape, surfacing a tangible essence of a hyper commodified culture. With its pulsating palette reminiscent of his native hometown in Indiana, the artist reveals intimate elements of his life while elevating consumerist ideals of American pop art. In his practice, Indiana reconfigures text to its most powerful and impactful form.
“LOVE is purely a skeleton of all that word has meant in all the erotic and religious aspects of the theme, and to bring it down to the actual structure of calligraphy [is to reduce it] to the bare bone.”
These solid Roman letter typeface sculptures garner immediate attention setting into motion the heartwarming power of Indiana’s LOVE motif. Although it’s one of various iterations of the artist’s most famed work, the 3D stacked signature arrests the spectator’s attention with its exuberant physical form. These works present themselves in public parks and squares and have transcended a playful take of American visual lexicon. Indiana’s LOVE originates from an era that was subject to conflict due to the Vietnam War and the battle for civil rights yet its vivid blue and red aurora pack a strong visual. LOVE champions the ethos of the flower child generation who used this universal symbol to combat the pervasive symptoms of war and racism. Indiana’s LOVE transcends the spectrum of media, seizing various styles of reappropriation, solidifying the visual power of text.
LOVE, 1966-1998
Sotheby’s New-York: 17 November 2020
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 540,300
LOVE | Contemporary Art Day Auction | 2020 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE, 1966-1998
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, date © 1966-1998 and number AP 2/4 on the interior of the letter E
This work is artist’s proof number 2 from an edition of 6, plus 4 artist’s proofs
LOVE, 1966-2000
Sotheby’s New-York: 14 May 2020
Estimated: USD 400,000 – 600,000
USD 500,000
ROBERT INDIANA | LOVE | Contemporary Art Day: An Online Auction | 2020 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE, 1966-2000
Polychromed aluminum
36x36x18 inches ( 91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, date 1966-2000 and number AP 2/4 on the inside of the ‘E’
This work is artist’s proof number two from an edition of six, plus four artist’s proofs
LOVE, 1966-1999
Christie’s Hong-Kong: 3 December 2020
Estimated: HKD 2,000,000 – 3,000,000
HKD 2,750,000 / USD 354,780
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1999
Painted aluminum sculpture
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with signature, numbered and dated ‘1966-1999 R. INDIANA AP 3/4’ (on the underside)
Edition: 3/4 AP + 6
LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside), 1966-1999
Phillips Hong-Kong: 9 July 2020
Estimated: HKD 1,800,000 – 2,800,000
HKD 2,375,000 / USD 304,790
Robert Indiana 20th Century & Contemporary Art & Design Day Sale
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside), 1966-1999
Painted aluminum
35 7/8 x 35 7/8 x 17 7/8 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped on the lower interior edge of the letter “E”: ‘© 1966–1999 R INDIANA AP 4/4’
This work is artist proof number four from an edition of six plus four artist proofs
Love, 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 27 September 2019
Estimated: USD 300,000 – 500,000
USD 495,000
Robert Indiana (1928-2018), Love | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
Love, 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
36x36x18 inches (91.4 x 91.4 x 45.7 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA AP 4/4’ (lower edge)
This work is the fourth artist’s proof from an edition of six plus four artist’s proofs
Love, 1966-1999
Christie’s Paris: 4 June 2019
Estimated: EUR 300,000 – 500,000
EUR 310,000 / USD 348,890
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), Love | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
Love, 1966-1999
Corten steel
35 7/8 x 35 7/8 x 10 1/4 inches (92x92x45 cm)
Dated, numbered, with the signature and the editor’s stamps
‘1966-1999 5/6 ROBERT INDIANA MILGO BROOKLYN NY’ (inside)
This work is number five from an edition of six
Love, 1966-1997
Christie’s London: 7 October 2017
Estimated: GBP 350,000 – 450,000
GBP 464,750 / USD 607,255
Robert Indiana (B. 1928), Love | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (B. 1928)
Love, 1966-1997
Polychrome aluminum
35 5/8 x 35 7/8 x 18 1/8 inches (90.5 x 91.2 x 45.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ‘©1966-1997 R INDIANA AP 1/2’
(on the lower interior edge of the E)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1997
This work is artist’s proof number one from an edition of six plus two artist’s proofs
One of modern visual language’s most iconic statements, Robert Indiana’s Love series is recognized and cherished across the globe for its aspirational universality. The current work is an exquisite example of Indiana’s sculptural variants on this ubiquitous theme, with the letters LO gracefully surmounting the VO beneath. Uniformly executed in a rich, cherry-red (a logoed homage to his father’s employment at a Phillips gas station during the Great Depression), this typographic quartet is a classic reprisal of that most positive emotional idealism. In particular, the three-dimensionality of the work propels the language into a sphere of sculptural geometry, with an almost sensual dichotomy between positive and negative space. Channeling the accessible and communicative sensibilities of 1960s pop art, Indiana succeeded in creating an imaged slogan that binds language with a visual concept to accomplish a unifying totality.
“What I am thinking about, is the very elementary part that language plays in man’s thinking processes and this includes his identification of anything visual. And that is… that the word, the object, and the idea are almost inextricably locked in the mind, and to divide them and to break them down doesn’t have to be done. The artist has usually done it in the past. I prefer not to.”
Indiana’s initial exploration of the theme was sparked by his spiritual life. Attending a Christian Science church when younger, he was frequently exposed to a sole embellishment on an otherwise ascetic interior; the legend ‘God is Love’. This laconic phrase complied with the Christian Science doctrine, founded by Mary Baker Eddy in 1879 and adopted by many Americans in the twentieth century.
“The reason that I became so involved in [LOVE] is that it is so much a part of the peculiar American environment, particularly in my own background which was Christian Scientist. ‘God is Love’ is spelled out in every church.”
After receiving a commission from Larry Aldrich for the opening of a renovated museum dedicated to Christian Science, in which Indiana subverted this traditional phrase by reversing the nouns, he deducted the theological implications and started to work on the word LOVE alone. The classic and current version of the work was realized in print in 1966, after initial interpretations included a design for the Museum of Modern Art’s Christmas card. In addition to his indebtedness to logo and signage design, the final scheme reflects Indiana’s nurtured passion for poetry. Well-versed in the works of the great American poets, from Edgar Allan Poe and Walt Whitman to Hart Crane, Indiana’s Love, like other works in his artistic œuvre, revels in a poetic textual enthrallment, establishing an interpenetration of word and image.
“My goal is that LOVE should cover the world.”
This textual thematization has made Love an accessible vehicle for universal reappropriation, alteration and parody. At first, the image unwittingly anticipated the 1967 Summer of Love, whilst reacting against the threat of nuclear war and the Space Race. Since then, it has been repurposed, reinterpreted and reprised for diverse functions, borrowed by Google, the 2008 Barack Obama Presidential Campaign (in which Indiana himself wittily transformed LOVE into HOPE), and the rap-metal band Rage Against the Machine, propelling Indiana’s visual statement to even higher realms of popular culture’s pantheon. Furthermore, Love’s charming simplicity and pervasiveness provides a tonic to shed light and happiness over dark, troubling times; this indispensable vitality ensures its continued relevance and essentialness as an emblem for contemporary visual life.
Love (18-inch)
Love-Blue-Green, 1966/1997-1999
Phillips London: 18 October 2025
Estimated: GBP 180,000 – 250,000
GBP 490,200 / USD 656,870
Robert Indiana Modern & Contemporary Art Day Sale
Polychrome aluminum
This work is number 6 from an edition of 8 plus 4 artist’s proofs
Arriving in vibrant blue and green, the present work is a bold sculptural example of one of the best-known forms in twentieth-century art: Robert Indiana’s LOVE. Realized in polychrome aluminum in 1999, its titular letters are stacked in a two by two square, its ‘O’ nudged 45-degrees to rest at its iconic, jaunty angle. The three-dimensional serif type is faced in blue and has green interior sides, heightening its graphic impact. Indiana created his first LOVE painting in 1964, and the following year, the Museum of Modern Art requested to use the artwork for its gift-shop Christmas cards. In 1966, Indiana held an entire show of prints, paintings and sculptures featuring the motif at New York’s Stable Gallery. Wildly popular, his four-letter word became an American Pop icon, joining the ranks of Warhol’s soup cans and Lichtenstein’s comic-characters. Indiana continued to revisit the form in different formats and scales throughout his career. Some of its most-celebrated iterations include as a beloved Valentine’s Day stamp, first issued by the US Postal Service in 1973, and monumental sculptures which are displayed in public parks and plazas globally. Indiana was recently the subject of a major retrospective at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, where a twelve-foot version of LOVE (Red Blue Green) greets visitors at the entrance. Indiana’s bold use of color—blues, greens and reds—was greatly inspired by his own lover, the abstract painter Ellsworth Kelly. Merging pictorial and lexical vocabularies in his career-defining series, his striking statement remains relevant today.
LOVE (Red Faces Violet Sides), 1966-2000
Phillips New-York: 21 November 2025
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 541,800
Robert Indiana Modern & Contemporary Art Day Sale, Morning Session
Polychromed aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name
Number and date “(c) 1966–2000 R INDIANA 8/8” on the lower interior edge of the “V”
Conceived in 1966 and fabricated in 2000, this work is number 8 from an edition of 8 plus 4 artist’s proofs
LOVE (Gold/Blue), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s Paris: 8 July 2025
Estimated: EUR 200,000 – 300,000
EUR 304,800 / USD 357,330
LOVE (Gold/Blue) | Modern & Contemporary Discoveries | 2025 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Gold/Blue), 1966-2000
Polychrome aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm)
Signed, numbered AP 2/4 and dated 1966-2000 (on the right edge of the “V”)
This work is number two of four artist’s proofs, set aside from the edition of eight
The American LOVE (White Blue Red), 1966-2000
Sotheby’s Hong-Kong: 29 September 2025
Estimated: HKD 1,200,000 – 2,000,000
HKD 1,651,000 / USD 212,210
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
The American LOVE (White Blue Red), 1966-2000
Polychromed aluminum
17 7/8 x 17 7/8 x 9 inches (45.5 x 45.5 x 23 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, date 1966-2000, number 6/8 and fabricator’s copyright (at the bottom)
This work is number 6 from an edition of 8 plus 4 artist’s proofs
LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside), 1966-1997
Sotheby’s New-York: 21 November 2024
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 840,000
LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside) | Contemporary Day Auction | 2024 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
LOVE (Red Outside Violet Inside), 1966-1997
Polychromed aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, date 1966-1997 and number 1/8 (on the outside of the ‘V’)
Conceived in 1966 and fabricated in 1997, this work is number 1 from an edition of 8 plus 4 artist’s proofs
LOVE, 1966-1998
Christie’s London: 10 October 2024
Estimated: GBP 150,000 – 200,000
GBP 189,000 / USD 246,955
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1998
Polychromed aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date ‘© 1966-1998 R INDIANA 7⁄8’ (on the inside edge of the “V”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1998, this work is number seven from an edition of eight plus four artist’s proofs
LOVE (Red/Blue/Green), 1966-1999
K Auction Seoul: 26 June 2024
Estimated: KRW 290,000,000 – 400,000,000
KRW 333,500,000 / USD 239,455
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE (Red/Blue/Green), 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.6 x 45.6 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ”© 1966-1999 R INDIANA AP 3/4′
(on the inside edge of the “V”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is an artist’s proof outside from an edition of eight
LOVE, 1966-1999
Christie’s London: 14 October 2023
Estimated: GBP 170,000 – 250,000
GBP 201,600 / USD 244,440
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.6 x 45.6 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ”© 1966-1999 R INDIANA 7⁄8′ (on the inside edge of the “V”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 1999, this work is number seven from an edition of eight plus four artist’s proofs
LOVE, 1966-2001
Christie’s New-York: 13 May 2022
Estimated: USD 200,000 – 300,000
USD 302,400
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018), LOVE | Christie’s (christies.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928-2018)
LOVE, 1966-2001
Polychromed aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number, date and foundry mark ‘© 1966-2001 R Indiana 4⁄8’
(on the inside edge of the “V”)
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2001, this work is number four from an edition of eight plus four artist’s proofs
LOVE (Gold Faces Red Sides), 1966-2002
Phillips New-York: 24 June 2021
Estimated: USD 250,000 – 350,000
USD 315,000
Robert Indiana – 20th Century & Contem… Lot 149 June 2021 | Phillips
ROBERT INDIANA
LOVE (Gold Faces Red Sides), 1966-2002
Polychromed aluminum
17 5/8 x 17 7/8 x 9 inches (44.8 x 45.4 x 22.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, number and date “© 1966–2002 R INDIANA 8/8” and the foundry mark on the lower interior edge of the E
Conceived in 1966 and executed in 2002, this work is number 8 from an edition of 8
LOVE, 1966-1995
Christie’s New-York: 18 May 2018
Estimated: USD 250,000 – 350,000
USD 396,500
Robert Indiana (B. 1928), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (B. 1928)
LOVE, 1966-1995
Polychrome aluminum
18 x 17 3/4 x 9 inches (45.7 x 45 x 22.8 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s name, numbered and dated ‘© 1966-1995 R INDIANA 3/8’ (lower interior edge)
This work is number three from an edition of eight
LOVE, 1966-1999
Christie’s New-York: 1 March 2018
Estimated: USD 220,000 – 280,000
USD 262,500
Robert Indiana (b. 1928), LOVE | Christie’s
ROBERT INDIANA (b. 1928)
LOVE, 1966-1999
Polychrome aluminum
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature, number and date ‘© 1966-1999 R INDIANA AP 4/4’ (lower interior edge)
This work is the fourth of four artist’s proofs aside from an edition of eight
Translations
AMOR (Red Blue), 1998
Sotheby’s Diriyah: 8 February 2025
Estimated: USD 220,000 – 280,000
USD 228,000
Amor (Red Blue) | Origins | 2025 | Sotheby’s
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
AMOR (Red Blue), 1998
Polychrome aluminum on artist base
18x18x9 inches (45.7 x 45.7 x 22.9 cm)
Stamped with the artist’s signature R INDIANA, date 1998 and number 6/8 (on the outer edge of the ‘R’)
This work is number 6 from an edition of 8 plus 2 artist’s proofs
AMOR extends the spirit of his LOVE sculpture into a new language, a new territory, proving that Indiana’s sculptures are not just symbols of America, but of the world. Over the course of his career, Indiana experimented with LOVE in numerous languages including Spanish, Chinese, Hebrew and Sanskrit. Rendering each version with his instantly identifiable style serves to further abstract the word itself, asking us to push beyond its physical presentation and consider the deeper meaning.
“In a sense… I got down to the subject matter of my work… The subject is defined by its expression in the word itself… Love is purely a skeleton of all that word has meant in all the erotic and religious aspects of the theme, and to bring it down to the actual structure of the calligraphy [is to reduce it] to the bare bones”
Looking at the ways graphic letters and numbers acquire beauty as shapes and silhouettes when separated from their meaning, AMOR brings to focus the weight, balance and shape of each letter as they are neatly stacked on top of each other in a bold topographical design. The expressive red is used here not just for its symbolic association with love and passion but, when combined with Indiana’s typeface, graphic design and simplified stacked format, to communicate the universal emotion tied to a single word in an immediate and direct way, becoming an icon of contemporary art in the process.
Throughout his career, Indiana was fascinated by the potential of symbols and signs; his LOVE sculptures and paintings, in this sense, are the artist’s explorations of semantic possibilities. As Carl J. Weinhardt argues, Indiana’s practice elevates the word to new graphic and semiotic potential: “When [Indiana] carried some of the words (and eventually the numerals) that occupied him as a painter (LOVE, ART) into the sculptural dimension, he became literally a wordsmith, fashioning the logos in metal.” (Theresa Brakely, ed., Robert Indiana, New York, 1990, pp. 9-10.) Through AMOR (Red Blue), Indiana merges the loftiness of love with the physicality of metal, presenting the word “AMOR” in its multifaceted possibilities and beckoning viewers to unlock the myriad meanings behind it. Even devoid of any kind of anchoring context, AMOR (Red Blue) takes on the combination of sinuous curves, sharp lines, and the playfully tilted oblong form of the letter “O” to create an object that exudes a sense of exquisite grace despite its material solidity.
Ahava, 1977-2021
Sotheby’s New-York: 18 May 2022
Estimated: USD 250,000 – 350,000
USD 315,000
Ahava | Contemporary Day Auction | 2022 | Sotheby’s (sothebys.com)
ROBERT INDIANA (1928 – 2018)
Ahava, 1977-2021
Cor-ten steel
37x36x18 inches (94 x 91.4 by 45.7 cm)
Stamped ©1977-2021 R INDIANA 1/6 (on the lower exterior edge of the ‘V’)
Conceived in 1977 and cast in 2021, this work is number 1 from an edition of 6, plus 2 artist’s proofs.
INDIANA AND ROBERT TOBIN, RENOWN ART COLLECTOR AND PATRON, PICTURED 1977. AHAVA THE HEBREW VERSION OF LOVE, EXHIBITED IN CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK, LATER ACQUIRED BY THE ISRAEL MUSEUM, WHERE IT HAS BEEN IN PERMANENT DISPLAY ON THE BILLY ROSE SCULPTURE GARDEN. © 2006 ROBERT INDIANA