Andy Warhol

1928 - 1987

Biography

Andy Warhol began his career as a commercial illustrator. Born in Pittsburgh, he first studied at the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now known as the Carnegie Mellon University) graduating in pictorial design. He then moved to New York City where he found success working as a commercial artist for various magazines and publications including Vogue and The New Yorker.

His first one-man show at the Hugo Gallery was followed by a group show at the Museum of Modern Art in 1956. But it was the 1960s that would be his most celebrated era. During this time he produced many of his iconic works using images borrowed from popular culture. These would come to be known as the most significant works of the Pop Art movement and included the Campbell's Soup Can series and his series of portraits of Marilyn Monroe.

Warhol also made several films, which are now regarded as avant-garde classics. During the 1980s Warhol made the move into television and in addition to continuing his series of paintings, collaborated with many young artists such as Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Francesco Clemente. In 1987 after Warhol died following routine surgery; a memorial mass held for him in New York was attended by over 2,000 people.

A friend to bohemian artists, intellectuals, aristocrats and celebrities alike, he coined the expression '15 minutes of fame'. Considered to be the foremost Pop artist, he has been the subject of numerous retrospective exhibitions at major museums throughout the world.

Images

Flowers 1964 Acrylic silkscreen ink on canvas 20.3 x 20.3 cm © The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / DACS, London 2010. This work of art is not currently owned by Collection of Modern Art Inc. The work is solely used to indicate the type of works the fund aspires to acquire in the near future.

Five Guns Synthetic polymer paint and silkscreen inks on canvas 40.7 x 50.7 cm © The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / DACS, London 2010. The depiction of artworks herein should not necessarily be considered an intimation of ownership.