Influence of Celebrities
These are two works from a newer artist who made a collection of art inspired by the next artist I am spotlighting. Born in 1952 Artnet had this to say about her "Deborah Kass is a contemporary American artist. With a practice spanning across media and disciplines, Kass’s work is notable for her pointed feminist critique. Through her use of appropriation, she often mimics the work and styles of male artists to comment on and rewrite the patriarchal narrative of art history." ([CSL STYLE ERROR: reference with no printed form.]). These works are Robert Rosenblum, 1997 (Left) & Cindy Sherman, 1995 (Right). Both are takes on pop art works that were popularized by Warhol who used celebrities in much of his works as well. I enjoy these portraits as they usually use bright colors that make the faces and celebrities pop. Repetition is also used frequently in these works and shows 2 sides to the same works which is something I quite enjoy. For the recent past celebrities have been a main focal point of art as they are easily recognizable.
Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol was very well known for his contributions to pop art and work with celebrities. He passed away in 1987 but he has one of the most recognizable names in art. These works are Shot Sage Blue Marylin, 1962 (Left) & Cagney, 1962 (Right). His name and influence is apparent after knowing the work of Marylin Monroe was the highest paid for piece of work in recent history. CNN reported "The 40-square-inch "Shot Sage Blue Marilyn," one of dozens of images the artist made of Monroe in the 1960s, sold for a record $195 million at Christie's in New York Monday evening." (CNN). I think the unique style of this time plus the major influence of the celebrities depicted contribute to the popularity of these works. I like how he takes stills from photos and movies and adds his own spin to make them unique pieces of work. The use of color in this era is outstanding and makes every piece pop.
Jeff Koons is an American artist who primarily makes sculptures. These pieces are Michael Jackson and Bubbles, 1988 (Left) & Artpop - Lady GaGa, 2013. The Piece for Lady GaGa was actually featured on her album Artpop. A blogger named Emily Rothkopf had this to say "Koons first created the album cover artwork for GaGa’s 2013 release Artpop." (Rothkopf). His sculptures are mesmerizing and amazing in detail. He likes to use shiny colors to make his works pop out at you which I enjoy. His sculptures sizes are also quite impressive. As we see in his works above celebrity influence is very apparent. He chose to make a sculpture on the most famous pop singer ever and also commissioned album cover art which I think is a great form of art. It adds to the music when the cover is artistic as well.
References:
Artnet.com, 2023, www.artnet.com/artists/deborah-kass/. Accessed 20
Apr. 2023.
CNN, Oscar Holland. “Warhol Portrait of Marilyn Monroe Fetches a Record $195 Million.” CNN, www.cnn.com/style/article/andy-warhol-shot-sage-blue-marilyn-record-sale/index.html. Accessed 20 Apr. 2023.
Rothkopf, Emily. Jeff Koons – Lady Gaga Sculpture | CCTP-725: Remix and
Dialogic Culture. blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-725- fall2014/2014/03/03/jeff-koons-lady-gaga-sculpture/. Accessed 21 Apr. 2023.
Great blog post! I really enjoy the Shot Sage Blue Marylin piece; the way she's shaded is very pleasing, and how he made everything more dramatic in color suits the energy Marylin Monroe gave off. Robert Rosenblum is one of my least favorite pieces I've ever looked at. I wonder if it's the way his face is or the colors used but he looks like something straight out of a horror movie. I would've enjoyed this piece more if the artist had used more shading on his face, making his complexion less dead. But art is an expression, and the artist knows best how to express what she and her subject are feeling.
ReplyDeleteHi Matt, great post! The artists you chose this week work perfectly for your topic “Influence of Celebrities”. I really enjoyed reading your discussion of each piece and their significance pertaining to your topic. I especially enjoyed learning about artist Jeff Koons, I agree with you on your point of how mesmerizing his pieces are and how Koons use of color adds even more to the pieces. It was very interesting to learn that his art was featured on Lady GaGa’s album! Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI liked the layout of your blog post. I enjoyed reading your post on the modern blog Matt. I thought you had great descriptions and information about each art piece you have chosen for this post-modern blog. I learned a lot more about Jeff Koons. I had Jeff Koons on my own blog post. It's great to see that someone else added the same art as I did. I definitely connected with Jeff Koons and his perspective on art and what it meant and looked like for him. Great blog post overall.
ReplyDeleteI did not know Jeff Koons; I am glad you discussed them. I really like the Artpop Album, so shame on me. The difference I notice the most is that Koons can be seen making art that is directly going to be used by the artist. (Well, times have changed; who knows if Marilyn Monroe would have chosen Andy Warhool's print of her face as her social media picture) But I have indeed seen a lot of pop artists create collaborations with influencers and musicians. That is why I don't think pop art is going away anytime soon.
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