The Rise of Pop

 

As one of the most significant artists of his – or any – age, Andy Warhol's perception of the world reinvented the concept of artistic expression, profoundly impacting the course of art history through bridging the gap between high art and popular culture. Born in 1928 as Andy Warhola, Warhol ditched the 'a' in 1949 when he moved from his hometown of Pennsylvania to New York to embark on a career as a commercial illustrator. He discovered a city where Abstract Expressionism dominated the art scene, championed by artists such as Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning, who worked in a spontaneous manner often characterised by gestural mark-making.

 

Though the term 'Pop' was first coined in 1954 by the British art critic Lawrence Alloway to describe a new type of art that was emerging in the United Kingdom at that time, it was in the United States where Pop exploded into momentous success in the 1960s, spearheaded by Warhol as a leading figure. Whilst Abstract Expressionism was non-representational, evoking a response from the viewer through abstract form and colour, Pop Art's subjects were firmly rooted in the real world as everyday objects of consumer culture. Solidifying the idea that art can draw from any source, the movement continues to influence fine art and popular culture today. 

 

Ads Following Ads

 

In 1962, Warhol began his experimentations with photographic silkscreen printing – a technique that allowed him to easily reproduce images he appropriated from popular culture, undermining long-held notions of originality and authenticity and echoing his belief that ‘art should be for everyone’. Also associated with mechanical production and advertising, silkscreen printing embodied the essence of Pop, transforming the banal into bright, bold, and vibrant compositions of fine art.  

 

“I don’t change the media, nor do I distinguish between my art and the media. I just repeat the media by utilising the media for my work. I believe media is art.” 
— Andy Warhol

 

The Ads of 1985, of which the present work forms part of, exemplify Warhol’s obsession with popular culture, celebrity, consumerism, and commercialisation – all recurrent themes that define his oeuvre. Appropriating corporate logos of the 1950s, an era which witnessed a post-World War II surge in mass production after significant developments in technological innovation, Warhol’s portfolio highlights famous brands such as Chanel, Paramount and Apple. Chief among them, however, is that of his Lifesavers composition that both nods to his signature grid works including 200 One Dollar Bills and Marilyn Diptych (both 1962), and plays to the idea of consumable art in its direct link to his renowned images of Coca-Cola bottles and Campbell’s Soup Cans (first printed in 1962). 

Life Savers

 

 

Life Savers ad aired in the United States in 1984, a year prior to the present work

 

An American favourite dating back to 1921, Life Savers are universally familiar to Warhol’s viewer through their colourful ring-shape and distinctive packaging in paper-wrapped aluminium foil rolls. Indeed, Life Savers were so popular with the American public that many other candy manufacturers donated their sugar rations to keep Life Savers in production to be sent to the American troops during World War II to remind them of home. 

 

 

Vintage Life Saver magazine advertisement, 1950s

 

 

Here, Warhol merges his own distinct graphic style with the established format of vintage Life Saver advertisements from the 1950s. Like these advertisements, individual Life Savers are presented out of the packet in a playful, colourful display, below which Warhol depicts the open roll of Life Savers at the bottom of the image and the inclusion of the 5 cent price. Warhol further replicates the hand-written style font and tone of the advertisement slogans, writing in a faint prose that is just discernible against the radiant sky blue of the background; ‘get ‘em in the handy roll…everywhere…still only 5¢’. Furthermore, at the center of the composition is the tongue-in-cheek phrase ‘please do not lick this page!’ which both serves to engage the viewer and activate the senses, but also juxtaposes the inviting, sweet candy content by bringing to mind the idea of fine art being forbidden to touch. 

Playing to our Tastes

 

Claes Oldenburg, Pantry Case I., 1961-62 

Collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York

 

 

Unlike his contemporary Claes Oldenburg, a Pop Artist who also explored the motif of food in his clay pieces, texture is generated in Warhol's silkscreen series through numerous screened layers of synthetic colour that appear to almost fizz off the work's surface. This glowing visual effect shares similarities to the halo technique developed by Wayne Thiebaud, another peer of Warhol's who reflected his deep affection for the rituals and traditions of American life through experimenting with repetition in food-related compositions. 

 

 

 

Wayne Thiebaud, Cakes, 1963

Collection of the National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.

 

However, whereas Thiebaud works with a loose, emotive brushstroke - such as in Cakes (1963), where thick, buttery oil paint icing decorates each scrumptious dessert – Warhol creates his tempting round treats following a more mechanical method that ingeniously tackles consumerism head-on. As such, capturing the notion of nostalgia and sentimentality, Lifesavers' delightfully coloured sweeties are metaphorically digestible as well. Akin to Warhol's other depictions of popular household goods, the present work delivers a playfully powerful punch that transcends cultures and is universally understood. As elaborated by art critic Dave Hickey: 
 

"When we are hungry for soup, don't we seek out the culturally sanctioned brand name (Campbell's) and then select the flavor according to our taste? When we want a sweet, don't we reach for the trademark Life Savers and then select the taste we prefer by its color? And when a guy wants a girl, doesn't he seek out a version of Marilyn who suits his own emotional taste and décor? If this is so, how is our taste in high art any different? Is the process really that much more refined?" 
– Dave Hickey

 

Now recognised as the 'Pope of Pop' for his revolutionary art-making methods and pioneering eye, Warhol remains one of the most important figures in 20th Century contemporary art more than thirty years after his tragic passing in 1987. Created two years prior as part of his iconic Ads portfolio, one of the last and most sought-after series produced by the artist, Lifesavers returns to his earlier roots in commercial advertising and silkscreen experimentations of the 1960s, showcasing Warhol’s mastery of his trademark medium at its most mature level.