Raymond Pettibon – Yes, but Alas, 1990 – Silkscreen

// Yes, but Alas by Raymond Pettibon, created in 1990, is a reflective silkscreen print that combines text with expressive, abstract imagery. The artwork features a broad, painterly stroke of deep blue across the upper half of the composition, reminiscent of a sky or perhaps a sea, with irregular textures that evoke depth and movement. Below this, Pettibon has inscribed in his signature handwritten style, “Yes; but, alas, all the blue sky is repainted. By restoration there is no saying how much you have lost.” This statement adds a contemplative tone, speaking to themes of loss, change, and the passage of time. The minimalistic yet poignant combination of text and image reflects Pettibon’s introspective approach, inviting viewers to consider the fragility of memory and the irreversible nature of restoration.

Raymond Pettibon (USA, 1957) is a contemporary artist known for his graphic, text-laden drawings that merge pop culture, literature, and politics. Emerging from the punk rock scene, including designing for Black Flag, Pettibon’s works explore dark humor and subversion. His distinctive style is widely exhibited in galleries and museums worldwide.

Raymond Pettibon

Yes, but Alas, 1990

Form

Limited Edition Print

Limited Edition PrintA limited edition print is one of a number of prints made at the same time from one printmaking plate. A fixed number are made and signed by the artist, indicating the printing order, using the format 1/10, meaning first of ten prints.

Medium

Silkscreen

SilkscreenSilkscreen is a printmaking method that uses a screen made of silk or other mesh fabric. The screen is treated with a substance that blocks ink in certain areas, allowing ink to pass through only in the desired sections. Each color in the print requires a separate screen.

Edition

Edition of 40 + PPs

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Art comes after the fact, as a witness to certain things that have happened.
- Raymond Pettibon

Raymond Pettibon is a prolific contemporary American artist who is known for his drawings, which combine image and text and are often violent, ironic, and/or anti-authoritarian. Much of his illustration is political in nature, and uses black humor to critique contemporary culture. His primary medium is India ink on paper, and many of his works are black and white, although some are colored with watercolors, acrylics, pencils, gouache, or collage. His style is reminiscent of editorial cartoons, and is influenced by William Blake, Edward Hopper, and Francisco Goya. Raymond Pettibon got his start in the punk rock scene in the 1970s, and has created album covers, posters and other ephemera for bands such as Black Flag and Sonic Youth. Since 1978, he has produced limited edition photocopy booklets of his work, which he calls "Superflux Pubs," and from 1981 to 1986 he published his illustrations as an independent magazine,Tripping Corpse. Raymond Pettibon has been the recipient of a number of awards, including the Bucksbaum Award in 2004 and the University of Vienna's Oscar Kokoschka Prize in 2010. (Artist website)

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Raymond Pettibon