Pop Art

The term first appeared in Britain during the 1950s and referred to the interest of a number of artists in the images of mass media, advertising, comics and consumer products.

The media and advertising were favorite subjects for Pop Art's often witty celebrations of consumer society.

Critics saw Pop art as vulgar, sensational and without merit. Supporters liked it because they felt it was an art everybody could understand and that it brought all elements of art and life to one level.

Perhaps the greatest Pop artist, whose innovations have affected so much subsequent art, was the American artist,

Andy Warhol (1928-87).

Andy Warhol's paintings of soup cans and movie stars are classic examples of Pop art. Pop artists wanted to bring art back to the people and to make it more meaningful to everyday folks.

In the 1960s, Warhol began to make paintings of famous American products such as Campbell's soup cans and Coca-Cola. He switched to silkscreen prints, seeking not only to make art of mass produced items, but to mass produce the art itself.

                                                                                                                              

Hollywood Celebrities were favorite subjects for Warhol’s art.