Andy Warhol’s nephew will put the late pop artists’ work on sale for the first time on Tuesday in New York. The two paintings were made by Andy Warhol when he was a 20-year-old art student in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He belonged to an immigrant working-class family from Eastern Europe. 

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The two portraits from 1948 (Nose Picker 1: Why Pick on Me and Living Room) will be auctioned on Tuesday evening at New York’s Phillips.

James Warhola, the 67-year-old nephew of the artist, illustrator, and filmmaker Warhol said, “These two paintings have been in the family for over 70 years. And we’ve enjoyed them for many years”. 

Estimates undertaken in the Phillips auction house show that Nose Picker 1 will sell for between $300,000 and $500,000 while Living Room will go for $250,000-$450,000. 

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Andy Warhol’s well-known art Shot Sage Blue Marilyn, which features the image of legendary actress Marilyn Monroe, sold at auction for $195 million in May 2022 setting a record for 20th-century art.

James Warhola also told AFP, “My parents have passed, so it’s time that we will be selling them and splitting the proceeds.”

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Earlier after the May 9th auction this year, James Warhola said to AFP, “We cannot believe that his artwork has become so valuable. In fact, I think my uncle Andy would be, like, flattered.”

Andy Warhol was born on August 6, 1928, in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. His works including painting, silkscreening, photography, cinema, and sculpture, advertising, and celebrity culture that peaked in the 1960s. Some of his well-known works include the silkscreen paintings Campbell’s Soup Cans and Marilyn Diptych from 1962, the experimental movies Empire from 1964 and Chelsea Girls from 1966, and the multimedia performances known as the Exploding Plastic Inevitable.