Whoa, Glenn Ligon Condition Report??

two iris prints of glenn ligon's painting of a civil rights protest sign reading i am a man in black block letters on white. the sheet on the right has an additional screenprinted layer of notations made by a conservator describing all the physical variations and anomalies in the painting. together this is a new work titled condition report, and this example is being sold at christie's in october 2026
Glenn Ligon, Condition Report, 2000, screenprint on iris print, sheet: 31 7/8 x 21 5/8, the Bon à tirer for the edition of 20, plus one AP [plus 6 more AP and 2PP -g.o], selling at Christie’s London 20 Oct 2026

A while back I tried to track down all the editions of one of Glenn Ligon’s greatest prints—one of his greatest works to date—the 2000 diptych, Condition Report. It really felt like they were all in museums or otherwise as unobtainable as the 1988 painting they’re based on, Untitled (I Am A Man), Ligon’s first text painting, which is in the National Gallery.

And now, incredibly, a pair is turning up online at Christie’s, starting tomorrow, with an estimate of like two shillings sixpence.

This is the Bon à tirer, the proof that got the final approval to print the edition. Which is wild because Christie’s says the only declared proof was one AP. But there were actually 7 APs, and 2 printer’s proofs, in addition to the 20. Besides that anomaly, there is no indication of how it came to be owned by British clothing company founder Peter Simon. But this point, I think it’s best to just buy it, and sort out the details later, when it’s in your hot little hands.

1-20 Oct 2026, Lot 817, Glenn Ligon, Condition Report, 2000, est. GBP 6-8,000 [christies]