Registered as Andrew Warhola, Andy Warhol was born on August 6, 1928 in the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. The little Leo’s taste for art was influenced by his parents. His mother, Julia Warhola, was an embroiderer and in her free time she liked to illustrate. His father, Andrej Warhola, despite having died when Warhol was only 14 years old, recognized his son’s talent and dictated in his will that his life savings would go towards the boy’s artistic education.
In 1949, he graduated in art from the Carnegie Institute of Technology. After completing college, he moved to New York. And it was in the Big Apple that the artist began to stand out with his unique style. Initially, he worked as an illustrator for important magazines, in addition to making advertisements and displays for shop windows and stores, such as Vogue, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar and Tiffany & Co. In 1956, some of his works were exhibited at MOMA (Museum of Modern Art in New York).
THE BEGINNING OF POP ART
The 1960s was a remarkable period for Andy Warhol, as it is when he began to make his first pop paintings, including the famous series “Soup Can Campbell”, from 1962. Pop art started to gain prominence in this post-war period. The artists of the movement bet on bringing common objects to the spotlight. The historian Vanessa Beatriz Bortulucce says that this art is part of contemporary poetics, problematizing issues of consumption, mass media, sensationalism and capitalism.
“It is an excellent thermometer for this society, in this world that is inserted in the context of the cold war”.
Vanessa adds – “Contrary to popular belief, this is socially and politically engaged art. The poetics used in some of Andy Warhol’s works are accompanied by irony. Like the soup cans, other works transform materiality and the market into an art object, “this is an extremely relevant and different point, I think it’s a process that was already starting with the moderns, but that Warhol really opened up“.
“What’s great about this country is America started the tradition where the richest consumers buy essentially the same things as the poorest. You can be watching TV and see Coca-Cola, and you can know that the President drinks Coke, Liz Taylor drinks Coke, and just think, you can drink Coke, too. A Coke is a Coke and no amount of money can get you a better Coke than the one the bum on the corner is drinking. All the Cokes are the same and all the Cokes are good.” – Andy Warhol
In addition, Vanessa highlights the side of a multimedia artist, as the position of celebrity has gained another level – “What Warhol did was draw attention to very important points in society for the use of new media”.
Andy Warhol remains an iconic and influential figure in the history of art, leaving a legacy that transcends his time. His unique and daring approach to exploring mass culture, consumerism and celebrity challenged traditional artistic conventions and redefined the boundaries of what art could represent. His ability to capture the essence of contemporary culture and transform it into accessible and captivating works of art opened up new horizons for creative expression. Warhol not only created art, but also provoked dialogues about the intersection between art, society and consumption. His impact resonates to this day, continuing to inspire generations of artists to challenge norms and explore new ways of communicating through art.
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The article above was edited by Mariana do Patrocínio.
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