The American artist Andy Warhol was born Andrew Warhola in 1928. There has been quite a bit confusion to where and when Andy Warhol was born, but according to Andy’s birth certificate that was filed in Pittsburgh in 1945, he was born on August 6th in Pittsburgh. Whether or not this is the day he was born hasn’t been proved, but it was on this day he would celebrate his birthday. However, there is no doubt that he died on February 22nd, 1987, at New York Hospital after a gallbladder operation. “He is considered a founder and major figure of the POP ART movement.” But is his art considered art or just a duplication of items?
In 1960 he produced the first of his paintings depicting enlarged comic strip images- such as Popeye and Superman- initially for use in a window display. Warhol pioneered the development of the process whereby an enlarged photographic image is transferred to a silk screen that is then placed on a canvas and inked from the back. It was this technique that enabled him to produce the series of mass-media images- repetitive, yet with slight variations- that he began in 1962. These, included such items as Campbell’s Soup cans, dollar bills, Coca-Cola bottles, and the faces of celebrities, can be taken as a comments on the banality, harshness, an ambiguity of American Culture.
The Campbell’s Soup is one of the most famous and recognized paintings of Warhol. It was done in 1962 and is oil on canvas. “This painting defines his personal artistic repertoire of low cost consumer items. The soupcan is a mass market article of the American consumer and a recognizable symbol of Americans way of life.” However, is this art or a duplication of a soupcan? It does symbolize America, but a replication of a soupcan is not considered art in my eyes. He’s imitating a picture that another person created and taking credit for the idea. That’s like saying one report is an original, but if another person copied it and took credit for the report, it’s plagiarism. That’s not fair to the person who designed the label and not being acknowledged for his/her work. Now, if Warhol had added his own techniques or own style to the soupcan, then that would be different. It’s like the original, the colors are the same, and the lettering is the same. Nevertheless, he didn’t include his ‘way’ and that would be considered copying.
