This historic character, considered an icon by many can he blamed for the revolution of art. A critic of American culture and history, he became the voice of stardom and obsession through art in the heart of the American DREAM.
A N D Y W A R H O L
Andy Warhol, Picture from FLICKR
Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he was the son of Slovakian immigrants. Warhol as a child was outcast, he was diagnosed with Sydenham’s chorea which causes skin pigmentation blotchiness, thus his look. This caused him to stay home and become a hypochondriac. According to many Warhol interviews this helped him become and develop his skills and persona.
His career began in the 1950s drawing shoe advertisements that were made in a sassy loose, blotted-ink style, these made it to his early exhibitions in NYC. Later he was hired as a free land artist for RCA Records to design record covers and other promotional material.
WARHOL was one of the early users of silk screen printmaking. His work was nowhere near perfect, but it was part of his process of creating art. Blotches, smears and imperfections can be found all over his book ‘POPism‘.
His first breakthrough came with his first NYC solo exhibit in which we displayed 100 Dollar Bills, 100 Can Soup Cans, 100 Coke Bottles and Marylin Diptych. After this his fame increased and his name became associated with art and pop.
During the 1960s he opened his famous studio, known as ‘The Factory’, he gathered an entourage consisting of a wide range of artists, writers, musicians, and underground celebrities. He became controversial. The 60s were his peak years.
Andy Warhol was obsessed with fame, glamour and sex it is what made him so interesting and repulsing. He created art that was conflicting yet not detrimental for the mind. His movies are not for everyone but for those who enjoy art and the mind of WARHOL, they are an exquisute piece of art. Here are a few samples of some of them : Blow Job , Vinyl and Chelsea Girls.
WARHOL died in 1987 in a hospital in NYC, he left behind a legacy of paintings, movies, a foundation, a museum and a series of books that explain his life and theories to the tea. Most importantly he left a mind set, a way of thinking and viewing american culture and stardom that I believe is the ground for the current obsession mid-america has for fame and fortune.
“I love Los Angeles. I love Hollywood. They’re beautiful. Everybody’s plastic, but I love plastic. I want to be plastic.” – A N D Y W A R H O L
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