Andy Warhol was introduced to the renowned art dealer Jacob Weintraub through their mutual friend Carlo Bilotti, a cosmetics magnate and art collector who became a significant patron of Warhol's work. The two hit it off immediately, and Weintraub commissioned five portraits from Warhol: four of his wife Bronka and one of himself, which is the present work. As David Norman, Vice Chairman of Sotheby’s, wrote in the 2002 introduction for the sale of the Weintraub collection: “I met the Weintraubs while Jacob was working on his autobiography. His life story is remarkable, surviving the Warsaw Ghetto and coming to America with no resources or background in art, only to become one of the most successful art dealers of his generation. During his early years as a dealer, Jacob organized some of the most impressive exhibitions of German art in New York at the time. Jacob and Bronka were well-known figures on Madison Avenue and in the art world. They not only represented major mid-century sculptors like Henry Moore but also befriended them. They were avid philanthropists, constantly working for and donating to their chosen charities, and remained active well into their eighties. The Weintraubs were vibrant and charming, making friends all over the world. Jacob was always impeccably dressed in a three-piece suit, ready with a story and some hard-earned wisdom. His business advice often came in the form of analogies to romantic conquests. Bronka fiercely protected him. They could be stubborn and tough; some days I was embraced as a son, and others, I came close to being thrown out—I rarely knew what made the difference. It was a rite of passage to be shown the door at the Weintraub Gallery.”

The portrait held a prominent place in their stunning Fifth Avenue apartment overlooking the Metropolitan Museum. It greeted distinguished guests from various fields—music, art, theater, politics—upon entering. The portrait, with its raised eyebrows suggesting aloofness and calm self-assurance, and a classic pose with hand under chin reminiscent of Warhol’s 1967 self-portrait, perfectly captures the personality of a man who rose from humble beginnings to fame in the art world, much like Warhol himself. Warhol was so pleased with the image he created for this portrait that he used it to develop a new style of portraiture in which he randomly combined patches of color. Unbeknownst to Weintraub, Warhol secretly made a second version of the portrait for himself, which was sold by the Warhol Foundation at auction in 2012. A similar pose and sartorial elegance are found in Warhol’s portrait of Giorgio Armani.
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Andy Warhol, born in Pittsburgh in 1928, became the leading figure of Pop Art by merging avant-garde aesthetics with commercial culture. After graduating in pictorial design from the Carnegie Institute of Technology in 1949, he moved to New York and became one of the most sought-after commercial illustrators of the 1950s. In the 1960s, he shifted to painting and revolutionized the art world with works like the Campbell's Soup Cans series and the Marilyn Diptych, using silkscreen techniques to explore the intersection of consumerism, celebrity, and artistic expression. Warhol’s silkscreens, sculptures replicating supermarket products, and experimental films like Empire and The Chelsea Girls pushed the boundaries of contemporary art by questioning the nature of fame, media, and mass production.

Warhol’s fascination with celebrity culture and materialism earned him a global reputation and countless commissions from socialites and stars. His work, which both critiqued and embraced the commodification of culture, has influenced generations of artists by blurring the lines between high art and popular culture. His provocative statement that “in the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes” reflects his deep understanding of media’s role in shaping public perception. Decades after his death in 1987, Warhol remains a towering figure in contemporary art, with his works housed in major museums worldwide, including MoMA, the Whitney Museum, the Centre Pompidou, and Tate Modern.