Five reasons Andy Warhol is so popular right now
So why the current obsession with the pop artist? We believe there are striking resonances with our contemporary moment that might be fuelling the revival.The early 1960s marked a time when, much like our own, Russian tensions were high, and the media was awash with violent scenes of war . Warhol’sseries used the same silkscreen technique as his iconic, kitschy soup can artworks, only this time using newspaper images as the source material .
The famed Silver Factory became a space for Warhol to embrace the swish by welcoming a motley group of LGBTQ+ collaborators, many of whom are immortalised in Lou Reed’s songcelebrates the beauty and diversity of the New York gay scene. It does this by bringing drag queens and trans women of colour like Stonewall Riots activist Marsha P Johnson to the fore. Warhol’s inclusive vision speaks to a new generation of LGBTQ+ youth inspired by prominent queer icons, from Olly Alexander to RuPaul.
Warhol understood that visibility was the key to fame: being seen in the right place with the right people at the right time. His 1968 comment about 15 minutes of fame is more relevant than ever before. He anticipated the likes of Kim Kardashian, a reality TV star turned global superstar, as well as the instant fame of ordinary people enabled by viral moments on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
Above all, these recent depictions reveal the ever-changing mythology of Andy Warhol - he continues to be shaped by what we want him to be. As pop art theorist Lucy Lippard said:"Warhol's films and his art mean either nothing or a great deal. The choice is the viewer's." But one thing is clear, the current spotlight on Warhol seems to suggest that he is an artist, once again, of the moment.
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