The Portfolios, Andy Warhol
The Factory, Warhol’s New York studio, became a gathering place for celebrities and fellow artists. Ahead of his time he constantly documented his daily life through photography and film, anticipating today’s social media. More than any other artist of his generation, he understood that through the mass reproduction of images from contemporary life, a new age was emerging where high art and consumer culture would become inextricably linked.
Andy Warhol saw celebrity culture as intrinsically superficial in American society with images of public figures being used by marketing companies for financial gain, but in reality saying little about the person behind the mask. His subjects included consumer goods and celebrities, but also approached themes ranging from still life, the Renaissance, politics and the natural world. He displayed an extraordinary ability to select images that still have resonance today.
He is known for his willingness to experiment with unconventional techniques and his innovative use of the screenprinting process. Cleverly appropriating motifs and images from advertising, magazines and newspapers, he integrated these into graphic, vibrant works through production techniques including printmaking and photography. To this day, Warhol remains one of the most important artists of the twentieth century and continues to influence contemporary art and culture. Due to the universal themes dealt with in his works and the way they have come to permeate popular culture, his art is as much a part of our lives now as the sources that inspired it.
