Andy Warhol

Born in 1928 in Pittsburgh, Andy Warhol was a pioneer of the American Pop Art movement. His work is widely recognised for its iconic colourful style — mixing contemporary art with celebrity culture and consumer goods.

You have just then copied a common item?" "Yes" "Why have you bothered to do that? Why not create something new?" "Because it's easier to do so.

Before he became the mythic pop artist in the platinum wig, Warhol worked as a commercial artist. So it should have been no surprise when he debuted his Campbell’s Soup Cans, or took over Stable Gallery with his Brillo Boxes in 1964. 

Warhol saw consumerism as a fact of popular culture, and therefore of pop art – which is all about blurring the boundaries between so-called high art and everyday life. 

Altered Image by Andy Warhol and Christopher Makos,, 1981

Pop just means – it’s a short word for things that people like at the time.

He never forgot his commercial background, extending his media empire with Warhol TV and Interview Magazine. Long before his death in 1987, Andy Warhol was a living legend.

Marilyn, 1967

See A Shoe And Pick It Up, 1955

Brillo Box (3 cents off), 1964


More in this series

Marina Abramović
00:53
video

Marina Abramović

The GOAT of performance art didn't get where she is today without risking her life a few times. Born 1946 in Belgrade, Serbia, this trailblazing artist has taken on some of the most extreme feats of endurance and vulnerability – including one of the weirdest break-ups you've ever heard.

black and white portrait of Hiroshi Sugimoto
00:54
video

Hiroshi Sugimoto

Hiroshi Sugimoto uses his 19th century box camera to photograph man-made projections of human existence.

2 min read
Photograph of Kehinde Wiley
00:58
video

Kehinde Wiley

Kehinde Wiley, born in 1977 in Los Angeles, is a prominent American artist acclaimed for his vibrant and reimagined portraits that fuse contemporary subjects with classical European painting styles.

Black and white photo of Leonora Carrington
00:56
video

Leonora Carrington

In Mexico, British Surrealist painter Leonora Carrington is a national treasure. But in her home country, she is much less well known. How did this young debutante from rural Lancashire become one of the most loved painters on the other side of the Atlantic?

3 min read

Insightful?

Insightful?

Subscribe to the Avant Arte newsletter for the art world in your inbox.


Discover more insights

An image of the artist Mark Bradford.
article

Scorched Earth: A Tale of Two Cities

Mark Bradford’s abstract map works visualise the systems of race and class that have shaped American cities. To mark the release of a new silkscreen edition that translates "Scorched Earth", we unpack the parallel histories of Tulsa and LA excavated by the original.

5 min read
Anna Ridler – What's it worth?
essay

Anna Ridler – What's it worth?

Conceptual artist Anna Ridler has been using artificial intelligence and machine learning for over a decade. Her work with tulips explores value, speculation and desire.

6 min read
A hooded figure with glowing eyes stands against a starry background
essay

Meet the artists shaping the future of tarot

The humble yet powerful tarot card has inspired artists for centuries. Today, tarot is more popular than ever, so we take a look at its long history and the creatives celebrating it now. Along the way, we speak to two of our favourite artists and tarot creators, Claire Yurika Davis and Marcella Kroll.

6 min read
Studio Works in Situ
article

Studio Works

Studio Works offers the chance to collect original artworks by emerging global artists. The first instalment features Alfie Caine, b.wing, Bell Nakai, Lin Yen-Liang and Sun-Kyo Park - five artists we were excited to meet earlier this year.

2 min read