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Words by Caoilfhionn Rose

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His famous prediction that ‘”in the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes”

is all too real for the man who, almost 30 years after his untimely death, has a legacy that resonates throughout our society. His appropriation of the language of mass culture in the fine art realm has lead to recognition of Warhol as the most Influential artist of the 20th century. Andy Warhol was, and will always be, known as “The Prince of Pop” because of his groundbreaking art. As an artist, he has embraced and established popular

culture as we know it. He has made pop icons out of nothing and made bigger pop icons out of pre-existing ones. Although his ideas may often seem a little strange, he is considered by many to be a genius. The world, and popular culture as we now know it, would be very different if it weren’t for the imagination of Andy Warhol. Who among us can say that we’ve never encountered anything related to Warhol? Very few, I’d imagine. From T-shirts to cooking aprons, printed artworks to Apple Photo Booth filters, Japanese VHS advertisements

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to The Velvet Underground, Warhol seems to span all bases, but was that his intention? Film critic and writer Peter Wollen, described Warhol quite aptly as “A filmmaker, a writer, a photographer, a band-leader, a TV soap opera producer, a window designer, a celebrity actor and model, an installation artist, a commercial illustrator, an artist’s book creator, a magazine editor and publisher, a businessman of sorts, a stand-up comedian of sorts, an exhibition curator, a collector and archivist, the creator of his own carefully honed celebrity image, and so on...Warhol, in short, was what we might loosely call a “Renaissance man,” albeit a Pop or perhaps post-modern Renaissance man.” Perhaps then, Andy wanted to to grant himself the immortality which he bestowed upon Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley, by embodying all that epitomised his era and the zeitgeists of post-1980s popular culture. Warhol was the face of popular culture, and with that came the territory of having to infiltrate all modes of media and pop culture; whether he wanted to or not, he was the leading pop icon of the 1960s and ‘70s, exploiting the media to transform himself and his gilded entourage, heralding the consumer-led, celebrity-driven world that we live in today. He remains as famous and controversial as the images that he created, and whether you love him or hate him, the world remains intoxicated with the magic of his stardust. Warhol grew up in a slum ghetto in Pittsburgh during the Great Depression of the 1930s. His Czechoslovakian mother, a humble and pious

woman, showered Warhol with magazines, movies and (music) records as a young boy. His obsession with celebrities, glamour and decadence flourished from an early age, when religion was still a huge part of his family life. Yet at some point, it becomes clear that pop culture took centre stage in Andy’s world, as celebrities invaded the place in his mind where religious icons once prevailed. Warhol got his first big break in New York City during boom-time America. The Consumer revolution was in full swing and he was swooped up by a commercial advertising agency, where it’s said that he recognised the power of branding and marketing through art. Given Warhol’s interest in the mass consumerism that overtook American society in the late 1960s and 1970s, it comes as no surprise that his iconic picture of an oversized can of Campbell’s Soup is granted the same worship as the Hollywood stars that Warhol immortalised in his screen-printed, bright hues. Warhol’s interest in fame, celebrity and media culture prompted him to re-examine mundane, everyday, mass-produced objects. Drawing on his extensive advertising background, he would then approach them on an artistic scale similar to that of Hollywood stars and political figures. What was, and still is, most exceptional about Warhol’s art is that it is accessible to anyone, from Barack Obama to your postman. It’s about capitalism, it’s about consumer culture, and it’s about us. He exhibited how an artist can take the banal, put it in a gallery and call it art, then take it out of that very gallery and unleash it into the

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world around us. Warhol made us question the credibility of art, and by using everyday items and well-known celebrities, the credibility of real life. His art that is a commentary on modern consumer culture then became a part of it. Warhol’s images, movies and music show an unflinching, in-your-face power that has redefined the role of the artist, throwing open the doors to an ‘anything goes’ style of art. Warhol’s art reflects advertising as it developed in the ‘50s and ‘60s, but he also anticipated how marketing works today. His obsession with fame, collaboration, repetition in images, and dissolving the boundary between public and private are also key factors in online marketing. It’s almost as if Warhol knew what would be popular on the Web before it even existed. And there’s no denying that his witty, dry humour would have made for some golden Tweets. Marketing for Warhol was not an extra step but an integral part of his work, just as it is an integral part of our society today. Although you may not even realise it, you are constantly marketing

and rebranding yourself. From that perfectly orchestrated Instagram selfie, to your redrafted Facebook status update, you’re marketing yourself to an audience, even if it is just your friends. What’s the difference between you and the outlandishly colourful Marilyn portraits created by Warhol? In those her beauty is marvellous, but the reality

is that when those paintings were produced, she was dead, from a suspected suicide. That’s not to say that although your blue eyes sparkle in your recent Facebook profile picture, you’re actually dead behind the eyes! On the contrary, we’re simply showing how Warhol seemed to have great foresight into how society would evolve, all the while establishing a timeless legacy that has transcended through art and everyday life. His work provides a chronicle of significant

events, from the supposed suicide of Marilyn Monroe to the dominance of Red China, to the hastening threat of multi-national corporations to our unwavering to need to fashion ourselves for the pleasure of others. If nothing were to remain

‘WHAT WAS, AND STILL IS, MOST EXCEPTIONAL ABOUT WARHOL’S ART IS THAT IT IS ACCESSIBLE TO ANYONE’

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of the years from 1962 to 1987 but Warhol’s works, we would have a pretty solid time capsule. Warhol’s most radical lesson is reflected in the work of artists of subsequent generations. His themes, processes, personas, and approach to creating art are evident in the work of some of the most boundary-pushing conceptualists, abstract painters, photographers and video artists working today. The commoditised beauty of pop art, as well as Warhol’s pervasive presence in American culture, has influenced the works of one of our favourite photographers, David LaChapelle. We can see more than just a glimpse of Warhol in the work of LaChapelle, the man whom Warhol gave his first media job at Interview Magazine in the 1980s. David LaChapelle is now one of the most celebrated contemporary glamour photographers and has photographed hundreds of American pop icons in bizarre, gaudy, and fantastical ways. His photographs are glossy, thought provoking and very eye-catching. His sexualized colour photos of celebrities and fashion

models are as unique as they are controversial. Nothing is held back. They reveal a great deal of Pop art influence (it was unavoidable really!) through his use of bright colours, hyper-real details, and larger than life themes in order to mock the consumerist, objectifying celebrity culture. The subject is not only painted with cosmetics but also draped in expensive jewellery and haute couture, bordered by the most bizarre props imaginable. Coincidentally, David LaChapelle also photographed Warhol’s last portrait. However it was not garish like his other portraits, which look like the result of an acid trip, but minimalist, black and white, and slightly eerie. The look in Warhol’s eyes almost suggests he knows what is to come. Andy Warhol remains one of the most influential figures in contemporary art and culture. He inspires creative people worldwide thanks to his omnivorous curiosity, lasting imagery, artfully cultivated celebrity and a colossal body of work that traversed every available medium.

‘HIS SEXUALIZED COLOUR PHOTOS OF CELEBRITIES AND FASHION MODELS ARE AS UNIQUE AS THEY ARE CONTROVERSIAL. NOTHING IS HELD BACK.’