Series · Andy Warhol

Cowboys And Indians

Cowboys And Indians

Cowboys And Indians by Andy Warhol

Rather than focusing on a single subject, Cowboys and Indians brings together ten images that have shaped America’s understanding of the West. Portraits of legendary figures sit alongside Indigenous artefacts and national symbols, creating a portfolio that feels part history, part Hollywood and part cultural commentary.

John Wayne, Annie Oakley, General Custer, Geronimo and Teddy Roosevelt appear alongside a Northwest Coast mask, Plains Indian shield, Kachina dolls, an Indian Head Nickel and Mother and Child. Although each image has its own story, Warhol presents them all with the same bold colours, flat planes and graphic intensity that define his late screenprints.

By treating historical figures, film icons and cultural objects with equal importance, Warhol blurs the line between documented history and the mythology that grew around it. The portfolio becomes less about the American frontier itself and more about the images that continue to define it.

Published in 1986, just a year before Warhol’s death, Cowboys and Indians is one of his final major print portfolios and one of his most ambitious explorations of American identity.

Works in this series

About The Series

Warhol produced Cowboys and Indians during the final years of his career, a period in which he increasingly revisited themes that had fascinated him for decades: fame, history, consumer culture and the creation of national identity.

The portfolio was commissioned by Gaultney, Klineman Art Inc. and printed by Rupert Jasen Smith, Warhol’s long-time master printer. Rather than celebrating the American West, Warhol examines the way it has been constructed through photography, cinema, advertising and popular culture.

Many of the source images were themselves reproductions, taken from publicity photographs, postcards or widely circulated historical imagery. By appropriating these familiar visuals, Warhol continues the approach seen throughout his career, asking how repeated images shape public memory.

One of the portfolio’s most striking works is Mother and Child, the only print depicting two figures rather than one. Based on a vintage postcard of a Native American woman carrying her child, it introduces a quieter, more intimate moment that contrasts with the military leaders, performers and political figures elsewhere in the series.

Beyond the published portfolio, Warhol also created additional images connected to the project, including Sitting Bull, War Bonnet Indian and Action Picture. Although these were not included in the standard edition, they demonstrate the wider scope of the series and Warhol’s broader interest in how the American West has been represented.

Editions And Variations

The standard Cowboys and Indians portfolio was published in 1986 as a complete set of ten screenprints on Lenox Museum Board.

Edition details include:

  • Edition of 250 signed and numbered impressions
  • Artist’s Proofs (AP)
  • Printer’s Proofs (PP)
  • Hors Commerce (HC) impressions
  • Roman numeral proofs
  • Published by Gaultney, Klineman Art Inc.
  • Printed by Rupert Jasen Smith
  • Catalogue Raisonné: Feldman & Schellmann II.377–386

Collectors should also be aware that Warhol produced a small number of Trial Proof (TP) portfolios comprising fourteen images rather than ten. These exceptionally rare sets include four additional works that were ultimately omitted from the published edition:

  • Sitting Bull
  • Action Picture
  • War Bonnet Indian
  • Buffalo Nickel

These Trial Proofs are distinct from the standard edition and are seldom offered publicly, making them particularly desirable to specialist Warhol collectors.

Works In The Series

The published Cowboys and Indians portfolio comprises ten screenprints:

  • Annie Oakley (F. & S. II.377)
  • General Custer (F. & S. II.378)
  • Kachina Dolls (F. & S. II.379)
  • Northwest Coast Mask (F. & S. II.380)
  • Plains Indian Shield (F. & S. II.381)
  • Mother and Child (F. & S. II.382)
  • Geronimo (F. & S. II.383)
  • Indian Head Nickel (F. & S. II.384)
  • Teddy Roosevelt (F. & S. II.385)
  • John Wayne (F. & S. II.386)

Collecting Cowboys And Indians

Cowboys and Indians stands apart from many of Warhol’s print portfolios because it doesn’t revolve around a single celebrity or image. Instead, it brings together a range of subjects that explore how American history has been remembered, commercialised and mythologised.

This variety appeals to different types of collectors. Some seek individual prints featuring recognisable figures such as John Wayne or Geronimo, while others are drawn to works like Mother and Child or Northwest Coast Mask, which offer a different perspective on Indigenous culture within Warhol’s practice.

Complete portfolios are particularly sought after because they preserve the dialogue between all ten images. Seen together, the works reveal Warhol’s intention to place Hollywood heroes, political leaders and Native American cultural objects on equal footing, encouraging viewers to question the narratives that have shaped America’s national identity.

As one of Warhol’s final major print portfolios, Cowboys and Indians also occupies an important place within his late career, demonstrating the confidence and technical refinement of his screenprinting at its peak.

Notable Auction Results

Complete portfolios of Cowboys and Indians appear relatively infrequently at auction, contributing to sustained demand among collectors.

In October 2024, a complete portfolio sold for US$825,500 at Phillips, setting a new auction record for the series and highlighting growing appreciation for Warhol’s later print portfolios.

Individual prints also perform strongly, with values influenced by subject matter, provenance, condition and rarity. Complete sets typically command a significant premium, reflecting both their scarcity and the opportunity to acquire the portfolio exactly as Warhol intended it to be seen.

Explore Available Cowboys And Indians Prints

Optima Contemporary advises collectors seeking to buy or sell works from Andy Warhol’s Cowboys and Indians series. Speak with our team for guidance on provenance, rarity, market positioning and current availability.