EUR
CAD
AUD
GBP
MXN
HKD
CNY
MYR
SEK
SGD
CHF
THB
SAR
AEDRobert W. Richards (American, 1941-2019)
About Seller
1155 Westminster Street
Providence, RI 02909
United States
Vallot Auctioneers was founded in 2003 as a fine art specialty auction house in Tribeca, and recognized as one of the first fine art specialty auction galleries in Manhattan. Now based in Providence, RI, the auction house continues the excellence in focusing on bringing fresh quality lots to the mar...Read more
Live Auction in Progress ... Currently on Lot Two ways to bid:
- Leave a max absentee bid and the platform will bid on your behalf up to your maximum bid during the live auction.
- Bid live during the auction and your bids will be submitted real-time to the auctioneer.
Bid Increments
| Price | Bid Increment |
|---|---|
| $0 | $10 |
| $100 | $25 |
| $500 | $50 |
| $1,000 | $100 |
| $2,500 | $250 |
| $5,000 | $500 |
| $10,000 | $1,000 |
| $25,000 | $2,500 |
| $50,000 | $5,000 |
| $100,000 | $10,000 |
About Auction
LiveAug 20, 2026
Our AFTER DARK/AUGUST auction features works that highlight the beauty of the male form across all genres and mediums. From the great gay artists of New York from the Piers to the East Village Scene (David Wojnarowicz, Andy Warhol, Christopher Makos, Jack Dowling) to international artists both historical and contemporary (Pavel Tchelitchew, Jean Boullet, John Barrington, Alair Gomes, Slava Mogutin, and Michail Tsakountis), our latest catalog showcases the very best of gay fine art and culture. Vallots Auctioneers info@vallots.com
View Full Catalog (125)
- Lot Description
Untitled (Illustration with a Keith Haring and Celia Cruz Heel Motif), ca. 1980s.
Gouache and pen on paper.
Signed in blue gouache on the lower right, "RWR".
Gouache and pen illustration depicting one of Keith Haring's figures supporting a cantilevered Salsa heel.
9 x 12 in. (22.8 x 30.5cm.)
Notes:
Alongside his commercial work in mainstream fashion illustration, Robert W. Richards developed a substantial body of homoerotic art. His drawings appeared in many of the leading American gay-interest publications of the 1970s and 1980s including Mandate, The Advocate, Honcho, Playguy, Torso, Blueboy, and Stallion. Richards worked as correspondent for Manshots, an international review specializing in gay pornography, where he reporting on prominent performers and filmmakers. Many of his sketches from this time, some produced on the sets of adult films directed by figures such as Joe Gage, were the subject of the exhibition Gods of Erotica at the Leslie-Lohman Gay Art Foundation in 2003.
Richards' approach to the male figure departed from the heavily muscled beefcake ideal that dominated much early contemporary gay visual culture. In a 2014 interview, he described his preference for elongated, dancer-like physiques: “I like dancers’ bodies: long limbs, long muscles, as opposed to that scrunched-up look with short little muscley arms. It’s not my aesthetic.” [1]
Combined with his fashion background, Richard’s skill for rendering clothing, gesture, and anatomy, became a defining characteristic of his erotic body of work. Richards primarily worked in Prismacolor pencil, charcoal and watercolors, with a preference of drawing from live models rather than photographic references.
Richards began exhibiting professionally in 1983 alongside fellow fashion illustrator and erotic artist Richard Rosenfeld at the Basement Gallery, then directed by Charles Leslie. Richards curated a Peter Berlin retrospective in 2006 and Stroke: From Under the Mattress to the Museum at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art in 2014, an exhibition showcasing the artistic significance of illustrations published in historic gay magazines. Stroke subsequently travelled to the GLBT Historical Society Museum in San Francisco in 2016.[1] Cameron Keady, interview with Robert W. Richards, “Robert W. Richards: Dreamboys,” Gayletter, no. 1 (October 2014)
https://gayletter.com/robert-w-richards-dreamboys/Condition
Nothing adverse to note.
For further condition details or additional images, please contact info@vallots.com
- Provenance
Property of a Private New York Collection.
- Shipping Info
-
We do not offer in-house packing and shipping services. Shipping can be expensive, please consider obtaining an estimate prior to bidding. Below we have listed our preferred shippers as a courtesy:
THE UPS STORE - CRANSTON
148 Atwood Ave, Cranston, RI 02920
(401) 654-6381
THE UPS STORE - PARSONAGE STREET
22 Parsonage Street, Providence, RI 02903
(401) 369-7029
We will be glad to assist you with your third-party shipping needs, however, we assume no liability for any shipper you use or any loss or damage occasioned in transport or otherwise as a result of shipping.
IN PERSON PICK-UPS
In person pick-ups are to be scheduled by appointment during business hours (weekdays 9-4 pm) at 1155 Westminster St. Providence, RI 02909. Please call (401) 273-1618 or email: info@vallots.com
-
- Payment & Auction Policies
-
Available payment options
-
-
- Buyer's Premium
