Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol was an American artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure of the Pop Art movement. His works explored the relationship between the artistic expression, the celebrity culture, and the advertising.

Early Life and Education

Warhol was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1928 to a family of immigrants from Slovakia. His father worked in the coal mines and his mother was an embroiderer.

He studied commercial art at the Carnegie Institute of Technology and graduated in 1949. He moved to New York and became a successful commercial illustrator.

He worked for the magazines and the advertising agencies and won awards for his designs. He used the blotted-line technique that became a characteristic of his early work.

The Pop Art

Warhol began to paint the images of the consumer products in 1962. The paintings of the Campbell's Soup Cans and of the Coca-Cola bottles were exhibited in Los Angeles.

He adopted the technique of the silkscreen printing, which allowed the mass production of the images. He used the photographs of the celebrities and the newspaper images of the disasters.

He created the series of the portraits of Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, and other celebrities. The works explored the themes of the fame and of the mortality.

He founded the studio known as the Factory, which became a centre of the artistic and the social life of New York. The studio attracted a wide range of artists, musicians, and writers.

The Films and the Other Works

Warhol produced a large number of films, including the experimental films Sleep and Empire. The films were extremely long and showed the ordinary events in real time.

He produced the films of the Factory stars and the screen tests of the visitors. His films were shown in the art galleries and the underground cinemas.

He published the magazine Interview, which featured the interviews with the celebrities. He wrote the book The Philosophy of Andy Warhol.

He produced the television programmes and the music videos. He also worked as a producer for the rock band the Velvet Underground.

The Later Years and the Legacy

Warhol was shot and seriously wounded by the writer Valerie Solanas in 1968. The attack left him with lasting injuries and changed his life.

He continued to work and to exhibit throughout the 1970s and the 1980s. He produced the series of the portraits commissioned by the wealthy patrons.

He died in 1987 in New York after a routine operation. His estate was valued at more than one hundred million dollars.

The Andy Warhol Museum was established in Pittsburgh in his honour. His works are among the most valuable and the most widely recognised of the twentieth century.

The Early Career

Warhol worked as a commercial illustrator in New York. He worked for the magazines and the advertising agencies and won awards for his designs.

He used the blotted-line technique that became a characteristic of his early work. The technique produced the images with the irregular and the broken lines.

He began to paint the images of the consumer products in 1962. The paintings of the Campbell's Soup Cans were exhibited in Los Angeles.

The Factory and the Circle

Warhol founded the studio known as the Factory in 1962. The studio attracted a wide range of artists, musicians, and writers.

He produced the films and the artworks with the assistance of the members of the circle. The studio became a centre of the artistic and the social life of New York.

He was shot and wounded by the writer Valerie Solanas in 1968. The attack left him with the lasting injuries and changed his life.

The Education and the Family

Warhol studied commercial art at the Carnegie Institute of Technology. He graduated in 1949 and moved to New York.

He was the youngest of three sons of the immigrants from Slovakia. His mother moved to New York and lived with him for many years.

He was a devout Catholic and attended the mass regularly. The religious faith influenced his work on the themes of the death and the mortality.

The Products and the Innovation

Warhol created the series of the portraits of the celebrities. The works explored the themes of the fame and of the mortality.

He produced a large number of experimental films, including Sleep and Empire. He produced the films of the Factory stars and the screen tests.

He published the magazine Interview and wrote The Philosophy of Andy Warhol. He produced the television programmes and the music videos.

The Leadership and the Strategy

Warhol founded the studio known as the Factory. The studio became a centre of the artistic and the social life of New York.