How Well Do You Know the King of Pop Art?
It seems just about everyone knows the basic facts on Andy Warhol (August 6, 1928 — February 22, 1987). One of the most influential artists of the 20th century, Warhol is renowned worldwide for his successful and controversial career as an avant-garde painter, film maker, author, record producer and wild socialite.
But beyond those basic facts, how much do you know about the life and work of the Pop Art King? Ready to test your knowledge? Take our quiz below and see how you fare!
Pop Art Pop QuizQ: What classic American food did Warhol turn into a pop art icon?
A: The Campbell's Soup tomato soup can.
Warhol first took to making large paintings of soup cans in the early '60s and went on to use the motif throughout his career. Doing so, he ingeniously borrowed the fame of the Campbell's brand to cultivate his own. The event of Warhol's soup can paintings marked the beginning of the Pop Art revolution, which highlighted instantly recognizable images and icons from American Pop (Popular) Culture.
Q: Did Warhol have any appreciation for classic art from museum masters?
A: Absolutely! But being the iconoclast that he was, Warhol paid homage to the classics by lending them his own personal avant-garde flair, as he did with Da Vinci's Mona Lisa and Boticelli's Birth of Venus.
Double Mona Lisa
By Andy Warhol
Details of Renaissance Painting (Sandro Botticelli, Birth of Venus, 1482)
By Andy Warhol
Q: What sort of people did Warhol most love to create portraits of?
A: The rich, famous, fabulous and -- most of all -- the beautiful. From Jackie O to Elvis, Warhol's vivid, often fluorescent portraits featured all of the day's most popular celebrities. He is quoted as once having said, "My idea of a good picture is one that's in focus and of a famous person."
Q: How did Warhol create his famous portraits?
A: Via silkscreen. Of his silkscreen paintings, Warhol said, "In August 62 I started doing silkscreens. I wanted something stronger that gave more of an assembly line effect. With silkscreening you pick a photograph, blow it up, transfer it in glue onto silk, and then roll ink across it so the ink goes through the silk but not through the glue. That way you get the same image, slightly different each time. It was all so simple, quick and chancy. I was thrilled with it."
Through a silkscreening process, Warhol turned the original black & white photography Marilyn Monroe Portrait (above) by Corbis into his famous Shot Blue Marilyn.
Q: What was the name of Warhol's art studio?
A: The Factory. The legendary studio was, from 1963 – 1968, the home of New York City's most groundbreaking parties. In this hip hangout, Warhol surrounded himself with rock stars, Hollywood celebrities, beautiful bohemians and the intellectually elite.
Q: Was Warhol's artwork all avant-garde?
A: Not entirely. Warhol also created works of art with simple, subtle beauty, like this black & white photography print:
So, how did you do? If you have any additional Warhol facts or Q&As to share, by all means, be our guest...
Save This Page
Comments (1)
These are really good, but I was just wondering the price on these -- not that I want to buy one but if you would like your site to be better then you should try to figure out the prices. Just a little help!
Posted by Anonymous | April 25, 2008 9:31 AM
Posted on April 25, 2008 09:31