Morisa Rosenberg
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Lot 73
ED RUSCHA(B. 1937)Fruit-Metrecal Hollywood
12 – 23 September 2025, 12:00 PDT
Online, Los AngelesSold for US$23,040 inc. premium
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Catherine Lay
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ED RUSCHA (B. 1937)
Fruit-Metrecal Hollywood (Engberg 53, Cirrus p. 340), 1971
Screenprint in grape and apricot jam with Metrecal soda on Copper Deluxe paper, signed in pencil, dated and annotated 'Cirrus Proof' (a proof, aside from the edition of 85 plus 18 artist's proofs), co-published by the artist and Bernard Jacobson Ltd., London, printed by Cirrus Editions, Los Angeles, with full margins, framed.
10 1/8 x 37 1/2in (25.7 x 95.3cm)
sheet 14 3/8 x 41 3/8in (36.5 x 105.1cm)
Screenprint in grape and apricot jam with Metrecal soda on Copper Deluxe paper, signed in pencil, dated and annotated 'Cirrus Proof' (a proof, aside from the edition of 85 plus 18 artist's proofs), co-published by the artist and Bernard Jacobson Ltd., London, printed by Cirrus Editions, Los Angeles, with full margins, framed.
10 1/8 x 37 1/2in (25.7 x 95.3cm)
sheet 14 3/8 x 41 3/8in (36.5 x 105.1cm)
Footnotes
"The first work that I did involving vegetable matter and organic materials came out of a frustration with materials. I wanted to expand my ideas about materials and the values they have." - Ed Ruscha
Jean Milant's fearless approach to experimentation is epitomized in his early collaboration with Ed Ruscha on Fruit-Metrecal Hollywood, one of the first editions produced at Cirrus. The print blends commercial imagery with a deadpan sense of humor, iconic hallmarks of Ruscha's conceptual practice. Milant and Ruscha pushed the boundaries of lithography by incorporating unconventional materials — specifically Metrecal, a now-defunct 1960s diet drink. Ruscha wasn't interested in simply printing images of objects; he wanted to use the substances themselves as ink. Milant, believing that "the artist had to risk something—and so did the printer," embraced the challenge. Together, they worked to create a texture and tone that captured the literal quality of the product, using the experimental possibilities of printmaking to transform ephemeral material into a permanent visual form. Rather than rejecting the absurdity of the idea, Milant leaned in — engineering ways to print with unstable ingredients. Jean Milant's fearlessness became embedded into the ethos of Cirrus Editions and marked a turning point in Los Angeles printmaking.