Yea Yea Yea - SUTCLIFFE, Stuart and Richard Prince

Published in 2012 by Harper's Books for an East Hampton exhibition, this limited edition catalog documents 21 paintings and paper-based works by Stuart Sutcliffe (1940-1962), the original Beatles bassist who left the band to pursue painting in Hamburg. Curated by Richard Prince, the exhibition and catalog examine Sutcliffe's brief but intense artistic career, which was cut short by his death at age 21. Prince authored an essay on Sutcliffe that was included in the limited edition booklet. Of the 500 total copies, 50 were signed by both Prince and Sutcliffe's sister, Pauline. The collaboration came about serendipitously when Prince, interested in Sutcliffe's work, contacted Harper's to be put in touch with the estate. Prince's curatorial involvement and essay position Sutcliffe's paintings within art historical discourse, connecting his Abstract Expressionist-influenced work to broader narratives of 1960s art and rock culture.