Kanye West’s Artwork From 1995 Appraised For Thousands Of Dollars

Some impressive artwork done by Kanye West back in 1995 when he was just a teenager was put on display on PBS’s Antique Roadshow, each piece subsequently appraised for thousands of dollars. We all know that Kanye is a man of many talents—rapping, producing, designing, maybe even giving lengthy sermons. However, one of his skills that most often gets overlooked is his knack for the visual arts. This gift of his was finally recognized in an unexpected way, though, when his drawings and paintings from the 90s were shown on an episode of Antique Roadshow.

The owner of the pieces revealed that he had acquired a large portfolio of Kanye’s artwork following the passing of the artist’s mother, Donda West, back in 2007. Appraiser Laura Woolley chose to display a select few pieces from the portfolio because these works in particular “demonstrate an extraordinary facility as an artist.” She also felt that the chosen pieces are indicative of the different mediums through which Kanye is capable of expressing himself as an artist. Among these pieces are a surreal portrait of a chained man, an unfinished portrait of a woman, and a few images of nature.

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There was also a flyer in the collection that promoted a showing of Kanye’s art back when he was just 17-years-old. The flyer notes all of the different art institutions that Kanye had attended around the world since the age of 4. It also indicated that “Kanye will begin his studies for the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at the American Academy of Art in Chicago and continue to pursue a career as a music producer as well.” Before appraising the pieces, Woolley acknowledged what she calls “the enduring legacy of celebrity,” which often impacts “a good portion of the value of artwork” done by a celebrity. However, she believes that, regardless, nobody “can deny that [Kanye] has extraordinary talent.” The larger graphite portrait of the chained man was given the highest price, valued by Woolley at around “$6,000-$8,000,” while the other graphite piece depicting an unfinished portrait of a woman was valued at around “$2,000-$3,000.” The rest were valued roughly between these two price points.