German artist and photographer known for her images of the Beatles. Astrid first met the Beatles in the 1960s on their first visit to Hamburg, at the Kaiserkeller club. She immediately fell in love with their music and began to photograph the band. Kirchherr fell in love with band member Stuart Sutcliffe, who would later leave the Beatles to pursue an art career with Astrid. ALS signed “greeting and kisses from Astrid who loves you xxxx,” three pages, 8.25 x 11.75, no date, but postmarked June 11, 1962. A letter to Stuart Sutcliffe’s mother two months after his passing. In part (with grammar and spelling retained, and Kirchherr switching from green to blue ink during the letter): “To day is sunday the 10 of june and my darling is two months away from me it seems like he is away for 50 years. I sit in the garden now the sun is shining and all is quite. How wonderful it would be when my stuart would sit beside me. He loved the garden. He liket to play with lady, run up and down and make us laugh. Wonderful darling no one knows how much I miss him two months without stuart i don’t know how i can do it without him…
today is a holy day tomorrow is well jesus have do something today i don’t know wat all the people go out with new shoes and things all happy and laughing the drive me crazy. I hate happy people because i am so unhappy. My head is pain today perhaps that is why i feel so terrible. I really wouldn’t if my darling can see me now. When he could see me now he would come and kiss me and say i love you because i am so so sad.
I have finde one other beautiful record i think you like it. Stuart and i have sing it always together…i have give this record to darling when he was still playing in the kaiser keller and i only know him a few days when i give this record to him. His little face was wihte and tears come in his eyes with happyness i could not speak one word english then, and klaus hath teach me wat the record means. One day later stuart hath give me a record love of my life and i was very very happy i play that record every day. Our love hath always been sky love.
Now I am in my bed, but i can’t sleep. So i think i write a bit more to you mum. I have talke before with my mother about darling stuart. All the beautiful things hi make to ceep us happy and laughing!
Two months i just can’t believe it. Two month without his wonderful face, voice and sweetness, and without his wonderful hands and eyes. Wat can i do how can i take my darling back from his heaven home i think hi don’t like to bee there all alone.
I have just think before why i can’t go for stuart, why i would be so happy when hi would still live and i could look after him from the sky, why god or whom ever it is not hath take me! But then my darling would be unhappy and sad like me. Why hath god not say to me.”
On the lower portion of the final page, Kirchherr has added six ink sketches, the most touching one being a full-length caricature of her playing a bass, captioned “me trying to play darling’s bass,” with another of Sutcliffe in angelic form, looking down on her from a cloud top, captioned, “B flat now darling! not G minor!—Stuart says.” Another sketch is of a highly decorated heart with “Astrid and Stuart love for ever,” written in the middle of it. Remaining sketches are of Kirchherr’s dog howling at the sky, captioned “lady can’t stand it!!,” and three individual flowers presented to other family members. Accompanied by the original mailing envelope, addressed in Kirchherr’s hand, signed on the reverse, “Astrid xxx.” In fine condition, with a central horizontal and vertical mailing fold, and a few light creases and wrinkles. A heart-wrenching piece of correspondence with Sutcliffe’s sudden passing still fresh in Kirchherr’s mind. Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity from Sutcliffe’s estate. Pre-certified Roger Epperson/REAL and RR Auction COA.
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