Katherine Schofield
Department Director
Lot 281
The Clash: A large stage backdrop created on the Radio Clash tour by graffiti artist Futura 2000 at the Lyceum Ballroom, London,
October 1981,
10 December 2014, 12:00 GMT
London, Knightsbridge£25,000 - £30,000
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The Clash: A large stage backdrop created on the Radio Clash tour by graffiti artist Futura 2000 at the Lyceum Ballroom, London,
October 1981,
an Untitled performance piece, created on stage while the band performed, spraypaint on canvas, signed by the artist, depicting an Urban scene with various statements such as Police & Thieves, Can We Get The World To Listen, Know Your Rights, Clash as well as their forthcoming single Radio Clash and the month October, culminating in a large slogan at the bottom Escape From London, 34½ x 15 ft (10.5 x 4.57m)
an Untitled performance piece, created on stage while the band performed, spraypaint on canvas, signed by the artist, depicting an Urban scene with various statements such as Police & Thieves, Can We Get The World To Listen, Know Your Rights, Clash as well as their forthcoming single Radio Clash and the month October, culminating in a large slogan at the bottom Escape From London, 34½ x 15 ft (10.5 x 4.57m)
Footnotes
This large and impressive backdrop was given to the vendor by The Clash's roadcrew manager at the time on the final night of the band's performance at the Lyceum Ballroom. The vendor and his family were the scaffolding crew who constructed the structure from which the backdrop was hung during the 7 night residency.
The Clash first met pioneering New York graffiti artist Futura 2000 in May of the same year, while they were performing at Bond's Casino, opposite Tin Pan Alley. Futura soon became part of the Clash camp and was invited to perform with the band during their Radio Clash tour. Later that year when the band resided in the Lyceum for the week in October 1981, while The Clash were on stage each night Futura spraypainted the large canvas backdrop which hung behind the group. Jumping up and down ladders to create the artwork offered in this lot. During the groups set he would also perform his rap The Escapades of Futura 2000. Futura designed the concert poster for these gigs which shares similarities to some of the compositions in this work.
Futura's early projects in the 1970s usually invloved painting subway trains and as such few of these early examples have survived as most were cleaned or destroyed. Early pieces such as this are therefore very rare and only one other Futura 2000 Clash backdrop has been sold previously, this also thorugh Bonhams salerooms. It was from the Combat Tour the next year and was a lot smaller as a number were created as opposed to just this stand alone piece.
Viewing of the backdrop is by appointment only at our warehouse facility, please speak to the department directly.
Literature: SALEWICZ, Chris Redemption Song, The Definitive Biography Of Joe Strummer, Harper: London, 2006