Andy Warhol - 15 Minutes of Fame at the Tate Modern
What connects Marilyn Monroe, Campbell’s tomato soup and Brillo pads? The creator of Pop Art, Mr Andy Warhol, that’s who. To us Warhol needs no introduction, but to 1950’s America he was a game changer. His art reflected the American dream but it also challenged it.
The Tate Modern has just unveiled their Andy Warhol exhibition which runs until September 2020, This is an opportunity not to be missed because the exhibition includes the best of Warhol’s work. All the crowd pleasers are there - to use modern vernacular, it’s all killer and no filler!
The comprehensive exhibition includes the famous Monroe canvas, the Brillo pad installation, behind the scenes photos from the Factory and Warhol’s most iconic self portrait. Even Debbie Harry makes the cut.
A highlight of the exhibition is the the recreation of Warhol’s multimedia show, The Exploding Plastic Inevitable. In a dark room reminiscent of a seedy nightclub, black and white films and a kaleidoscopic light show are projected onto the walls to music from the Velvet Underground - it’s a psychedelic trip but without the use of recreational drugs!
The exhibition contains everything from the 1968 Stockholm Moderna Museet catalogue to Andy’s personal wig collection. I know, I always thought that blonde mop was the result of bleach and some serious backcombing, but apparently not! Warhol began wearing wigs in the 1950’s when his hair started thinning but they soon became more than just vanity and more his unique defining brand.
Warhol wore his wigs without much style and just plonked them on his head so it was inevitable that one day there would be an incident! In 1985 at a New York book-signing a woman went for her 15 minutes of fame and snatched Warhol’s wig straight off his head. He was understandably upset but just put up the hood of his parka jacket and carried on with the book-signing!
Andy Warhol was once quoted saying ‘Art is anything you can get away with’. A sentence which implies that he was an amateur successfully winging it. In reality Warhol was one of the greats with huge talent who created an art style all of his own.
He loved an icon, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor and Jackie Kennedy to name but a few. Some were a little more unsavoury than others (Lenin and Chairman Mao spring to mind) but Warhol painted them all in his unique pop art style. By doing so, he reimagined art and thus became an icon himself.
Warhol’s work will continue to influence generations of artists to come, but such was his genius it’s not just his art that has stood the test of time. Master of the quip, his words are ones to live by. My personal favourite is ‘Everyone must have a fantasy’ - now ain’t that the truth!
Words and photos by Tanya Taylor © 2020