Debi Szarkowski-Effron, Warhol in Cookieland, 1987

Debi Szarkowski-Effron

Warhol in Cookieland, 1987

Limited Edition offset lithograph poster

Bears the photographer's copyright stamp and pencil numbered 138/190 on the lower left front

30 × 19 inches

Unframed

This is a fascinating and scarce poster as it depicts a KODAK contact sheet of photographs taken of Andy Warhol wearing a Cookieland hat, believed to have been taken circa mid 1970s. Cookieland was believed to have been a long defunct program at Rutgers University. Debi Szarkowski-Effron was a photographer, artist and program administrator who later became the Western Region photographer and resident artist for one of the Department of Agriculture's (USDA)'s programs until her untimely death in 2009. We believe this photograph was taken in 1971 when Debi was a student photographer and Warhol visited the Cookieland program, and then it was reprinted in 1987 - the year Warhol died, as a commemoration.

This poster was printed in 1987 - the year Warhol died, and bears the photographer's copyright. What's interesting is that we have never seen this Warhol contact sheet anywhere else in the world - except on other examples of this editioned poster that have come to market over the years. So this must have been in Debi's private collection as it bears her copyright - and is not one of the oft reproduced Warhol photographs seen worldwide.

A scarce and fascinating poster with heretofore unseen images of Warhol. If anyone knows more about this poster, beyond what we've been able to research ourselves - we welcome the information. And especially if anyone knows more about why Warhol visited Cookieland at Rutgers in New Jersey in 1971 -- please tell let us know.