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Andy Warhol Pictures Define A Distinctive Era In American Culture
When we speak of Andy Warhol pictures we are speaking of not only two kinds of pictures but of a distinctive era in American culture, of artists, models, and of factories turned into the-place-to-be studios.
Of course, now, at our end, we have the collections, galleries, and museum shows featuring Andy Warhol pictures of the sixties/during the flower-power and pop art period ascension—those the unique genius created under the influence of early comic books and brand name industry designs. We get to muse over the representative and telling design of he giant Campbell’s Tomato Soup can, the neon Marilyn (Monroe), the love blood reds of his John Lennon, the rich and crisp and active red and blue Superman and the infamous Dollar Sign, and the pop art replicas with cartoon colors of Einstein, Minelli, and other icons made more so via Andy Warhol pictures/art. At Warhol.org, you can revisit these pieces…in the Time Capsule 21 Exhibition and other sections of the Andy Warhol Museum (although the navigation is absurdly labyrinthine, so be patient, especially if you have a low-speed ISP).
There are also Andy Warhol pictures not reproducing art done by him but photos of him (besides those stunning self-portraits, that is). The most classic is, for example, the shot of Andy (looking like the founder of the Beatnik Movement, if you will) done by the brilliant and exacting Annie Leibovitz
We would be remiss, however, to neglect the Andy Warhol pictures that are motion pictures—films the artist made that were hugely impacting and subsequently popular when he made them in the late sixties and seventies and that have actually achieved in many instances and places cult status: consider for example the eight-hour work called SLEEP (1963), which depicts just that: a poet (John Giorno) sleeping. Or look at BLUE MOVIE, (1969) or FLESH, (?) or ANDY WARHOL FILMS JACK SMITH FILMING “NORMAL LOVE” (1963)—a piece that is postmodern before postmodernism even began….
And some few Andy Warhol pictures are those featuring the man, his name, or his life or art to some relevant degree. The first that probably comes to mind for you is I Shot Andy Warhol (1996). But there is also Basquiat, (1991) Scenes from the Life of Andy Warhol, (1991) and Cocaine Cowboys. (1979) Edie Sedgwick biographies, such as the one Angelina Jolie starred in, if I recall correctly, also include loose references to Warhol or the Factory.
In whatever form or by whatever frame, Andy Warhol pictures show odd combinations of whimsy and grace, spiritual angst and commercial awareness. They are raw, campy, but in their under- or over-statedness are forever representative of a time, a people, and an enigmatic artist and man.
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