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Andy Warhol a Founder of Pop ArtNew Direction for American Art of the 1960s
Assassinations, democracy, equal rights, Vietnam War; In the 1960s and 70s America faced tragedies and gave birth to a new culture of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll.
In 1960s America, styles of an older art world perished or went stale. Abstract expressionism gave way to the development of minimalism: something out of nothing with no relationship to art. It can be termed as contemporary Dadaism. It led to a new direction and the founders of pop art. Andy Warhol's FoundationsDeclared the most inscrutable figure in American art, Andy Warhol became the icon of a culture obsessed with image. He singlehandedly amazed viewers with his blurring of the distinction between high and low art. After receiving his BFA in 1949 from Carnegie Institute of Technology, he traveled to New York finding jobs in advertising. Matt Wrbican, archivist of the Andy Warhol Museum, writes in his essay titled Andy Warhol-a bio, published 2006 for American Masters of PBS, that Andy became an artist for magazines Glamour, Vogue and Harpers Bazaar illustrating shoes and led to his obtaining a position as chief illustrator for I Miller Shoes. In 1957 an advertisement won him the Art Directors Club Medal. On the sidelines, Andy was doing a series of pictures separate from the advertising world, which he considered was not taking his art seriously. Although his paintings reflected modern advertising, the motivation was opposite; he wanted to become a true artist. Warhol's Pop ArtIn definition, pop art is a style exposing everyday images as a part of consumer culture. It was going through experimental phases by artists using it as an alternative to abstract expressionism. Andy turned to the new style with his early works. Wanting his own subjects, friends suggested he should paint things he loved, which led him to his first exhibition of the Campbell's Soup Cans at the Irving Blum Ferus Gallery in West Hollywood. Six of the series sold for $100 each. Warhol ManiaAndy's obsession was money and celebrities. Later in the 1960s he switched from hand painting to silkscreen print to mass produce art. Wishing to resemble a machine, he opened a studio named The Factory , where he hired and supervised art workers to make prints, shoes, films and books. A fine example of his obsession is the silkscreen painting of Marilyn Monroe and money. With his choice of subject it had to represent philosophical notion with metaphoric quality. He painted money because he wanted to own money and his work was to provide it; his art speaking as a commercial commodity. Warhol must be noted for his other obsessions. Some of his films were pornographic; others lasted hours, such as The Sleep... which just shows a man sleeping. The concept was to keep the viewer watching the film. Warhol and the ConsumerMany can view Andy Warhol's work as a form of commercialism, but he took images of the commercialized world, transposing it to an art , and not only to market to the consumer. He was a genius with the intention to draw the crowd towards his art, influencing the mass market to purchase his work and earning the profit from it.
The copyright of the article Andy Warhol a Founder of Pop Art in 20th Century Art is owned by Todd Murray. Permission to republish Andy Warhol a Founder of Pop Art in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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