Andy Warhol wrote a manifesto in the style of a simple, straightforward declaration that paralleled his mechanized work ethic. In 3 sentences, the summary captures the key points: Warhol embraced popular culture and the ordinary lives of everyday people as subjects for his art. He wanted to make art accessible to the masses by using new technologies and production line techniques to efficiently reproduce images of celebrities and consumer products. Through repetition and simplicity, Warhol aimed to comment on commercial culture and the cult of fame in postwar American society.

1. Christine Atienza — Art 312: Twentieth Century Art — Fall 2007 — November 20, 2007 — Course Paper: Artist Manifesto

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Paper Experiment
Written in first person to come from the direct viewpoint of the artist, as if Andy Warhol wrote the manifesto
himself. Written in a format that parallels the mechanization of his work ethic. A simple, straight-forward declaration of
artistic intent, ideals, and thoughts. Words about art for the masses that can easily be read by the masses. A sort of
dialogue. Nothing too articulate, nothing too fancy. Something the common people can relate to. These are his
observations, these are his itentions. This is Andy Warhol.

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Let’s face it… times have changed. People are beginning to become more and more fascinated with celebrities and normal,
everyday life. It seems that the mindset has changed. Not just with art, but with life in general. It seems as if they are less
interested with formality and structure. A major S H I F T . Women nowadays are way more liberal than in the past. Just
look at their clothing and their lifestyles. They have become sex symbols. There is just more F R E E D O M visible.
Anywhere and everywhere. I love that. I love the freedoms. I love the lack of restrictions. I want people to see that. I want
to A D V E R T I S E that.
In the past, there has been such a formal approach to art. More for the wealthy. More for the minority. For those that have
either the time to spend to create art or the money to employ someone to do so. Oil paints, structured poses, idyllic
landscapes… these are all things I want to put an end to. I want these to become a thing of the past. Not everyone can get a
hold of expensive oil paints or hire a model or sit in front a vast landscape. These subjects don’t represent the T R U T H .
This isn’t life as it is seen. It’s all a pose, a façade, and I don’t like that. Gone are the agricultural days of the past. We have
evolved into an I N D U S T R I A L I Z E D culture. Machines, technology, it’s all so beautiful. We live in cities now. The
majority middle-class shouldn’t feel like they‘re under the grip of the bourgeoisie. That is not the purpose of art. I feel that
it is something E V E R Y O N E should be able to enjoy.
There are two subjects that I am interested in when it comes to art, the ordinary and the idolized. To me, ordinary is
something that the C O M M O N people can access. We have become a C O M M E R C I A L culture, with the world
revolving around us. Things that are popular revolve around us. That is what should be art. (Wikipedia: Pop Art)
F A M E , an incredibly interesting concept that people are drawn to. It’s a glamorous life. I admit it, I love it. The high life.
I’m so drawn to it. Like it’s a drug. The jewels, the riches, the fans, the popularity. Marilyn Monroe. Elvis Presley. Sex

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symbols. Newspapers, magazines, headlines, television, concerts, shows, appearances, openings. They are everywhere. I
can’t get enough of it. The world can’t get enough of it. And yet, I still feel that this V I S I B I L I T Y should be
heightened/amplified even more. It needs to be embraced. On the opposite end, there is the “ordinary“ which I feel has
the potential to be great. Just O R D I N A R Y people have the potential of becoming F A M O U S . No strain or force to
be glamourous though. No pressure. Also, another concept I love.
I feel that mass culture is beginning to take the world by storm. There are common things that are beginning to pop up
everywhere. I C O N S . I love it. I want it plastered E V E R Y W H E R E . More, more, more. I want to recreate that.
Maybe I’m the only one who wants to do this. That’s what it seems like at least. That’s fine, but I can’t do it with traditional
“fine art“ methods. That would take too long. There’s no way I could reproduce the high-speed modern lifestyle with those
methods. I need to tap into the new emerging technologies. I need something more efficient. I need something to mirror
my subjects, products of the mass market. I will create a production line. I see my art as a “factory“ of sorts (Wikipedia:
The Factory).
Maybe this is R E V O L U T I O N A R Y , maybe not. I don’t think so. I don’t intend it to be a big deal. Not at all. It should
be an even less important deal actually, especially since I aim to simplify things. Maybe it will be a precursor. Maybe. I
drew from the past, maybe this will define the future. Maybe not. What exactly is my aim. What is my art like? It’s a lot of
things. It’s a compilation. It’s a F U S I O N :
Like cubism, but not. I adore the reduction of forms, but it’s a a bit too simplified. I want people to have some sense of
what it is I am recreating.

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Like abstract expressionism, but not. I adore the color field aspects and gesture aspects though. A bit too much on the
extreme ends of the scale, however.
Like realism, but not. Perhaps with the ability to recognize forms and subjects. But that is it. Not too exact. Not too detailed.
This shouldn’t be done in this time. It just doesn’t fit.
Like minimalism, but not. I’m not creating an exact representation of a subject nor am I creating an extreme simplification
of form.
I am a simple person. I have a simple set of rules.
I live in a world with common people. I live in a common world.
REPETITION.
SIMPLICITY.
REPETITION.
SIMPLICITY.
REPETITION.
SIMPLICITY.
REPETITION.
SIMPLICITY.
I am Andy Warhol.

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Reference Images
Andy Warhol, Red Elvis, 1962, acrylic and silkscreen on linen
Andy Warhol, Elvis I and II, 1964, silkscreen on acrylic on canvas
Andy Warhol, Elvis I and II, 1964, silkscreen on aluminum paint on canvas
Andy Warhol, Single Elvis, 1964, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Triple Elvis, 1964, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Marilyn Diptych, 1962, acrylic, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Marilyn Monroe, 1962, acrylic, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, The Two Marilyns, 1962, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Gold Marilyn Monroe, 1962, synthetic polymer, silkscreen, and oil on canvas
Andy Warhol, Marilyn, 1964, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Reversal Series: Marilyn, 1979-1986, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Liz, 1965, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Large Campbell’s Soup Can, 1962, pencil on paper
Andy Warhol, Campbell’s Soup Can I, 1968, acrylic and liquitex, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, One Dollar Bill with Washington Portrait, 1962, pencil on paper
Andy Warhol, Two Dollar Bills (front and rear), 1962, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Peach Halves, 1962, oil on canvas
Andy Warhol, Close Cover before Striking (Pepsi Cola), 1962, acrylic on canvas, sandpaper
Andy Warhol, 210 Coca-Cola Bottles, 1962, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Campbell’s Soup, 1962, oil on canvas
Andy Warhol, Campbell’s Soup I, 1968, silkscreen prints
Andy Warhol, Brillo Box, 1964, silkscreen on wood
Andy Warhol, Brillo Box, 1964, silkscreen on wood
Andy Warhol, Del Monte Box, 1964, silkscreen on wood
Andy Warhol, Heinz Tomato Ketchup Box, 1964, silkscreen on wood
Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, 1967, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Flowers, 1964, synthetic polymer, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Portrait of Leo Castelli, 1973, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, 129 DIE IN JET (Plane Crash), 1962, acrylic on canvas

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Andy Warhol, Red Race Riot, 1963, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, White Car Crash 19 Times, 1963, synthetic polymer, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Orange Car Crash 10 Times, 1963, acrylic and liquitex on canvas
Andy Warhol, Orange Disaster #5, 1963, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Green Car Crash (Green Burning Car I), 1963, acrylic and liquitex, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Big Electric Chair, 1967, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Electric Chair, 1967, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Double Silver Diaster, 1963, acrylic and liquitex in silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Most Wanted Man No. 11 (John Joseph H., side), 1963, acrylic and liquitex, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Most Wanted Man No. 11 (John Joseph H., front), 1963, acrylic and liquitex, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Jackie Triptych, 1964, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Four Jackies, 1964, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Jackie III, 1966, silkscreen on paper
Andy Warhol, Atomic Bomb, 1965, acrylic and liquitex, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Mao, 1972, acrylic, silkscreen and oil on canvas
Andy Warhol, Flowers, 1970, silkscreen prints
Andy Warhol, Cow Wallpaper, 1966, silkscreen on paper
Andy Warhol, Mao Tse Tung, 1972, silkscreen and oil on canvas
Andy Warhol, Mao Tse Tung, 1973, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Diane von Furstenberg, 1974, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Mick Jagger, 1975, silkscreen prints
Andy Warhol, Self-Portrait, 1978, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Black on Bloack Retrospective Reversal Series, 1979, acrylic and silver print on canvas
Andy Warhol, Sill Life, 1976, acrylic and silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Myths: Mickey Mouse, 1981, acrylic on canvas
Andy Warhol, Gun, 1982, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, U.S. Dollar Sign, 1982, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Campbell’s Noodle Soup, 1986, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Campbell’s Onion Mushroom, 1986, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Last Supper, 1986, acrylic and liquitex, silkscreen on canvas
Andy Warhol, Last Self-Portrait, 1986, acrylic, silkscreen on canvas

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Bibliography
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Design, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, October 30, 2007.
Adan, Elizabeth. “American 20th Century Art and Abstract-Expressionism.” Course Lecture, Art 312. Department of Art and
Design, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, October 25, 2007.
Adan, Elizabeth. “Pop Art, Happenings, and Related Developments.” Course Lecture, Art 312. Department of Art and
Design, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, November 6, 2007.
Arnason, H.H. History of Modern Art: Painting Sculpture Architecture Photography. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, Inc., 2003.
O’Mahony, Mike. American Art. China: Foundry Creative Media Company Limited, 2006.
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Wikipedia, “Andy Warhol – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia,”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Warhol. Accessed October 12, 2007.
Wikipedia, “Pop Art – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia,”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pop_art. Accessed October 12, 2007.
Wikipedia, “The Factory – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia,”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Factory. Accessed October 12, 2007.