If Andy Warhol were an active artist in New Zealand, he might have done something like this painting. This is reminisent of 200 campbell soup cans (though there are only 56 bottles in this painting). Ignore that this may not be very well executed, the bottles aren't packed tightly enough, I know.My point is that Andy has many a time been accused of giving in to consummerism with his paintings of celebrities, newspaper clippings, dollar bills and mass-produced items. Who in their right mind would want to admire a painting of Watties tomato sauce (or Campbell soup)? You can see this in a supermarket isle any time you want. It really isn't something you ooh and ahh about.
I don't know about anyone else but the 200 soup cans catch my interest more than any landscape painting ever would. there is a rythm to it that makes me stop and follow the pattern, from can to can, are they really all the same? I stare, trying to catch the small differences, captivated by his powerful work. Has any other artist made you think more about his work?
-Tasha B
4 comments:
Also landscape paintings, pretty as some may be are something people can see just by looking out their window. It requires no thought process whatsoever to create. Art is meant to be an expression. Landscape paintings mean nothing to me. just my 2c.
Well said Tasha, however we are not all priviledged to look out the window and see fabulous landscapes. Some places have special meaning or feeling to people and this can be caught in paintings. Although personally I am not a favour of realist landscape I would rather have an interesting landscape painting or photograph on my wall than a photo of 200 odd can of Campbells or Watties tomato sauce.
Cheers Janet
While I appreciate Warhol for his contribution to his specific art movement, I've never thought he was a particularly great artist. It's like a joke that nobody got except Andy himself. Even in the picture you have there he's expressing the irony of the modern art world; "art" is what you can get away with.
As with most of his work, Andy Warhol was making a point with his campbells soup cans - not a work of art. Admiring his rows of cans for their aesthetic appeal is like reading a newspaper for the quality of the newsprint.
Just my lowest denomination of legal tender.
- traze
Art totally is what you can get away with. And if you get famous enough, you could tear out a little piece of paper, glue it to another piece of paper and that would hold great importance. I personally think Andy Warhol's work had a bit more to it than that.
-Tasha
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