In 1977 Warhol embarked on a series of portraits of athletes, initiated by the art collector and sports enthusiast Richard Wiseman. At first Warhol was unfamiliar with the sports stars but characteristic of his obsession with fame he recalled: “I really got to love the athletes because they are the really big stars”. Among those he painted was the jockey Willie Shoemaker, who is depicted here in his riding hat. This poster is for a joint exhibition between Warhol and LeRoy Neiman at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. The American artist Neiman was well-known for his paintings of athletes and sporting events. Warhol admired a painting by him of Muhammad Ali when he went to photograph the boxer at his training camp and hoped that his “would come out as good”.