Analysis Of Warhol s First Solo New York Exhibit At...

â€Å"An artist is someone who produces things that people don’t need to have.† This was one of the many famous quotes uttered by the eccentric yet revolutionary artist, Andy Warhol. At first one might think this quote would be the word of an advertising agent and indeed it is. This very idea, however, is what created the commercialized idea of Pop Art in the 1960s. Andy Warhol’s background as a commercial illustrator provided him with the ability to pioneer a new artistic movement. Warhol highlights the American shift towards consumerism through his work by using the techniques used by marketing plans, such as mass production and rhetoric. Warhol’s first solo New York exhibit at Eleanor Ward’s Stable Gallery established the spark of commercialism and pop culture that is heavily embedded in our society today. Warhol used his knowledge of advertisements; his artistic talents and his impeccable timing to single-handedly illuminate the societal ideals of products and celebrities alike in his artwork. Art movements work in cyclic patterns. Each new form works as a cause of the previous movement or event. Abstract Expressionism—the movement before Pop Art—reflected the idea that expression could not be found in traditional forms. They focused their art on being subjective, expressing psyche and emotion (Swisher). This development is what sparked the artistic movement, Pop Art, in the 1960s. Pop Art challenged this assertion and then-dominant ideals of expressionism. It used