2025-01-16
The most important figure of pop art is undoubtedly Andy Warhol. It is his screen prints depicting celebrities from the entertainment world and mediocre products such as Coca-Cola or a can of Campbell's tomato soup that are the most famous images illustrating post-war consumerism. What is worth knowing about pop art?
The origins of this artistic current are not linked to the United States, but to London of the mid-1950s. It was there that an association called the ''Independent Group'' introduced mass culture to debates about high culture. In addition to the members of the association (artists Richard Hamilton and Eduardo Paolozzi), two other representatives of pop art in Britain - Peter Blake and David Hockney - are also worth remembering. The former designed the famous album cover for The Beatles ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. The latter took realism from pop art and depicted mundane subjects in his paintings, such as conversation in a bar or contemplating the morning.
The best period for pop art in the United States was in the early 1960s and ended around the mid-1970s. The American branch of this trend was characterized primarily by the use of large formats, attention to drawing quality and intense colours. In addition to Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein and Robert Rauschenberg, among others, belonged to the "pantheon" of celebrities. Lichtenstein was largely inspired by the popular comics of the time. He used flashy colours and thick black outlines, usually depicting emotional, beautiful women. Robert Rauschenberg, on the other hand, used the collage technique and depicted pop culture icons, with a particular focus on sports stars.
It is worth knowing that many American artists started out in high art. Andy Warhol, for example, was a highly successful magazine illustrator and graphic designer. It seems that it was this experience that trained him in the language of mass culture and later allowed him to penetrate the salons.