How Much Is Triple Elvis [Ferus Type] Worth?

Triple Elvis [Ferus Type] (1963) sits in the canonical heart of Warhol’s oeuvre: the early 1960s moment when he perfected silk‑screened celebrity on reflective silver grounds. Drawn from a Flaming Star publicity still, the life‑size, serial Elvis image encapsulates Warhol’s core themes—fame, repetition, and mass media—while aligning with the landmark 1963 Ferus Gallery context. Within Warhol’s subjects, Elvis ranks alongside Marilyn, Liz, Jackie, and the Death & Disaster paintings as a defining American icon. The Triple composition adds psychological and optical intensity beyond the Double format, deepening the work’s resonance with institutions and top private collectors. As a result, Triple Elvis commands a meaningful position in art history and underpins nine‑figure price potential when condition and provenance are first‑rate.

Life‑size, silver‑ground Ferus‑type canvases from 1963 are intrinsically scarce and heavily competed for. Within the Elvis corpus, a Triple is notably rarer and more impactful than a Double; it stages Warhol’s serial logic with greater cinematic punch while retaining wall compatibility for major private and institutional spaces. The 2014 Christie’s result for a unique Triple Elvis and the persistent strength of Double‑Elvis benchmarks affirm the internal price hierarchy of the series. Scale matters, too: these screens exert a powerful presence that is difficult to replicate in later, smaller, or non‑silver variants. Scarcity, coupled with the precise image count and life‑size format, translates into sustained demand and a robust premium over more common configurations.

Blue‑chip provenance and museum‑level exposure add tangible market confidence and can unlock deeper bidding. The Fisher Collection’s stature and long‑term SFMOMA loan illustrate how Triple Elvis operates at the center of institutional programming for Pop Art. Works with Ferus‑period exhibition history, respected dealer chains (e.g., Bischofberger/Sperone), or prominent long‑term displays (as with the 2014 example) tend to command premium outcomes. Cataloguing depth—scholarship, literature, and marquee exhibitions—further de‑risks acquisition for global buyers. Should a Triple Elvis with this level of visibility come to market, we would expect third‑party guarantor interest and multiple underbidders, particularly from U.S. and European collections that prioritize museum‑caliber icons.

Warhol remains among the most liquid postwar artists, with broad global demand and active private channels. While 2023–2025 saw a selective, estimate‑disciplined market, trophy‑level, early‑1960s Warhols continued to elicit strong competition when subject and scale were unimpeachable. The 2014 Triple Elvis sale, the 2022 Marilyn record, and the 2022 White Disaster result collectively confirm depth for A+ material at the apex. That said, execution risk and macro conditions favor prudent estimate setting and use of irrevocable bids. In current conditions, a top‑quality Triple Elvis should still secure a guarantor near the low estimate, with upside driven by scarcity, provenance, and condition. Liquidity is therefore strong but quality‑dependent, justifying a disciplined $110–150m range.