Andy Warhol Marilyn Monroe Art And The Meaning Behind It

Andy Warhol Marilyn Monroe Art

The Andy Warhol Marilyn Monroe Art collection combines two icons from different fields to make beautiful portrait art. However, it wasn’t until Monroe’s death that Warhol produced this collection. So, they never shared the same room during the creative process. Warhol patterned the entire set on one of Marilyn’s publicity photos. The photo was from 1952. So, he took a classic photograph and added vibrant colors. The collection became an early part of his commercial success. He would then produce similar styles of portraits for other artists. This set of prints defined the era of pop art. It was ahead of its time. So, The Andy Warhol Marilyn Monroe Art collection is still relevant today. For example, you can find prints on auctions. You can also find reproductions and fakes. Meanwhile, the designs are also on many merchandises today, like bags and shirts. It is a pop culture masterpiece.

This is the featured image for the Andy Warhol Marilyn Monroe Art blog article
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Shot Marilyn Monroe Art By Andy Warhol

The Andy Warhol Marilyn Monroe Original surfaced in 1962. However, The Shot Marilyns have higher price tags. Warhol painted different colored backgrounds. The red, light blue, turquoise, sage blue, and orange backgrounds were the originals. The story goes a performance artist visited his studio one day. She saw the stack of Marilyns. So, she asked Andy Warhol if she could shoot the prints. Thinking that she meant taking a photo of the prints, he agreed. The performance artist Dorothy Podber took out her gloves and got a revolver gun. She then fired at the stack. But the one with the turquoise background survived. The “Shot Sage Blue Marilyn” piece is the most popular part of the original set. So, it sold at an auction for $195M in 2022. It’s now the most expensive artwork of all time. The acrylic and silkscreen piece is on 40-square-inch linen. The shooting is an excellent case of the story increasing an artwork’s value. The Shot Sage Blue Marilyn also set the record for the highest pre-auction estimate. The estimate surpassed the “Salvador Mundi” of Leonardo Da Vinci by $100M.

The Marilyn Monroe Artwork

There is a deeper meaning behind the vibrance of the artwork. In this painting, five rows of images look like they come from film strips. Those images show Monroe’s importance to society and the people who saw her work. You see the same picture over and over again to represent mass production. The Byzantine icons of Christian saints are the inspirations for the diptych design. This style symbolized how the public put celebrities on a pedestal, almost to a saint-like status. Fans nearly assign immortality to an image. But many were not happy with Warhol’s work. They described The Andy Warhol Marilyn image as reductive and sexist. This backlash is likely because he emphasized more feminine assets in the artwork and made her look one-dimensional. But timing is essential in this context. He made his female portraits during the troubled times of his subjects. The works include Red and Blue Jackie. That is perhaps his portrayal of the tragedy behind the glamour. He may have wanted to focus on their humanity and break down the immortality the public assigns them.

Browse through and purchase the vibrant collection of art Andy Warhol produced when you follow the link: https://hamiltonselway.com/portfolio-item/marilyn-monroe/