Andy Warhol: Influence on the Twentieth Century Pop Art Movement

Warhol wanted to capture the moments of protesters being attacked by police force to draw the issue to the public’s attention. He wanted his art piece to preserve a portion of these black protesters lives; what exactly they went through to receive the equality they now have today.

There have been different art forms that have come and go over the course of time. Hence I will discuss, two significant movements like Post-impressionism and Pop art. Two important artists from these movements are, Vincent Van Gogh and Andy Warhol. There are many differences and very few similarities between these two movements and artists, although more differences. Van Gogh is one of the most captivating artists of post-impressionism. . Throughout his career Van Gogh has painted many works. One of those magnificent paintings is “Starry Night” by Vincent Van Gogh. In the other hand we will discuss one of the popular paintings “ Gold Marilyn” by Andy Warhol. Warhol is also the most famous of the Pop Artists and played a major role in making the art movement popular.

When we eat a slice of pizza we tend to wash it down with a bottle of Coke when we 're feeling sick we tend to have some Campbell 's chicken noodle soup when we think of rock 'n ' roll the name Elvis Presley comes to mind and for America 's sweetheart and movie actress there is none other than Marilyn Monroe. These for iconic objects and figures all have one thing in common they have stood the test of time and continue to be a part of American culture. Today I 'm going to talk about one man who took these ideas and started a new movement in the early 1960s it movement coined pop art where everyday recognizable images that have stood the test of time and continue to influence and be a part of American culture. This man goes by the name of Andy Warhol.

When studying artists, styles of art and their respective time period, it is always important to find a few key artists that were responsible for the rise of new art trends. Traditionally, art has often a reflection of the most important elements within its respective time period, such as wars, religions, royalty, culture and expression. This is why the study of art history is needs to look deeper than simply understanding how certain artworks were created. Among the various artists studied in the course, Andy Warhol is definitely one of the most influential. Far ahead of his time in thinking and talented in several media forms, Warhol was a product of his time and defined his era with the use of his artwork, giving rise to other artists within the same time period. This paper will argue that Warhol was not only an influence to modern art, he defined the concept of "pop art", which combined consumerism and pop culture, creating works that questioned the norm of society at the time, while providing a strong influence to future artists. Warhol was hugely successful in his artistic efforts and several of his staple works will be discussed in regards to its significance and representation of its respective period of time, as well as Warhol’s influence on the history of art.

The sixties were a time of social and political change in America, and the art world was not left untouched. Early in the decade a new movement focused on popular culture and national icons began to develop. It was aptly named Pop art. "Many critics were alarmed by Pop, uncertain whether it was embracing or parodying popular culture and fearful that it threatened the survival of both modernist art and high culture..." (Stokstad 1101) Pop artists were not the first to make cultural statements with their work, however controversial art always draws criticism and attention. One of the most well known artists of the Pop movement was Andy Warhol, a young commerial illustrator from manhattan. Warhol's use of popular icons and brands as the focus

When considering the life and works of Andy Warhol, one thing is agreed upon for good or bad, he changed the visual construction of the world we live in. His window advertisements were the beginning of an era, where art would be seen in an array of forms away from the traditional paintings and sculptures of the old world. He made people see everyday material objects in a whole new light; through "Pop Art" he could transform mundane into extraordinary. He was a working man, a social climber, a builder, an acquirer of goods, and a known homosexual. These attributes all contributed to the interesting and complicated nature of his art.

America’s infatuation with labels was a relatively new trend in postmodern society. Andy Warhol’s “Silver Liz as Cleopatra” as well as his other pieces impacted societal views on modern art in relationship to value. Warhol had a strong belief that the loss of something in replicating an image was over powered by something of new value being created.

ost artists who lived anytime before the 20th century were never truly allowed to have the power to choose what they preferred to paint or draw. Artists were constantly being told what to paint by religious officials or royal monarchies. However, the world during the 1950's and 1960's was going through major cultural changes that it had never experienced before. Finally the world of art wasn't centered around just portraits of the royal family or religious symbols. Artists were allowed to express themselves in anyway they desired which ultimately created a whole new category of art. This transition of art created many openings for people such as Andy Warhol.

Even in his very early year of life, Andy Warhol knew that he wanted to grow up and be a part of the artistic world. Throughout his life, his dreams and aspirations were focused on creating art. His aspirations were so obvious in fact, that his father was able to recognize his talents and begin saving money for him to receive a college education. This education was relatively rare during the 1940’s, and therefore set him apart from many other artists of the time. Throughout his later life, Warhol was able to represent himself as an artist who did not conform to the norms of society at the time. His creative use of Pop Art is something that is still very relevant even in today’s society.

Andy Warhol was the artist who wanted to use the methods around him that were developing. He was the artist who accepted the change of the culture. Similar to his idea about the development of technology, the mainstream of Pop art was to be more positive on creating new forms of expression rather than the Abstract Expression that was the traditional style of art in America at the time using new methods.

Warhol, the son of devout Slovenian Byzantine Catholics, learned art from his mother while he lay bedridden from illness at the age of eight. Movies and photography also appealed to the young artist, who set up a darkroom in the family’s Pennsylvania basement. After graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Art degree, Warhol pursued a career in commercial art. Once in New York, Warhol thrived in the business and earned the title of “the most successful commercial artist of the 1950’s.” (Bio.com) In the early 1960’s, Warhol introduced the Pop Art, which captivated the world with bright colors and common items. Apart from ordinary things, Warhol also painted portraits of celebrities in the same colorful style. Warhol painted popular people and things, hence the name “pop” art. He is most well known for Campbell’s Soup Cans and Marilyn Monroe, both done in the same colorful style. He enveloped himself his own fame and the fame of others, creating artwork that showed the charisma of both the artist and the subject. Later in Warhol’s career, he explored other art forms, creating eccentric movies and even writing books. (Biography.com

One of his jobs was to design the weather map for NBC’s morning news. In 1952 Warhol held his first exhibit, it was not a financial success, but it enhanced Warhol’s reputation as a commercial artist. But his spare time was now taken up with pop art, inspired by Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg, two young pop artist, Warhol had come across in 1958. He began to paint, draw and print everyday objects such as, dollar bills, soup cans, postage stamps, comic strips, and soda bottles. According to Warhol, these were some of the consumer products “on which America is built.”

I believe his art work is brilliant. He definitely revolutionized the way Americans view celebrities with his paintings. Even in today's age, people are striving to be a celebrity by use of social media. Warhol was just another artist who made things from paintings, prints, sculptures, posters that people could buy and collect. Warhol was a conceptual artist, too, whose greatest work of art, I believe, was being Andy Warhol. What did it mean to be Andy Warhol? It meant knowing how to twist the dials and pull the levers of the staid art world machinery. Sometimes the goal was simply to impose objects of seemingly superficial content cans of soup, portraits of rich celebrities, flowers, cows into a world that takes itself incredibly seriously.

Many people believed Andy Warhol’s personality to be very plastic, fake and odd. Warhol constructed the image of a cold, manufactured person which he portrayed as himself to the public eye. Was this however his true personality or perhaps one of his most successful art performances? I intend to discuss how Warhol’s fascination with Hollywood had such a large influence on his work and his appearance. Warhol wanted his persona to become as plastic and manufactured as his mass produced works. He confined his daily wardrobe to black and white, so even when his photograph was printed he would be as easily recognisable as the black and white figure seen in public. A lot of the time

With the rise of this bona fide American phenomenon also brought critics. Critics asked and wondered how a can of soup or a soft drink could be considered art. Pop artist, Andy Warhol responded by stating, ”Art is what you can get away with.” What made pop art popular? It was brash, transient, witty, hostile, young, mass produced, and most importantly it was low-cost .