March 2011

SC State University in Orangeburg, SC, Features Works by Andy Warhol

South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, SC, in partnership with SC State’s National Alumni Association (SCSUNAA) will present the exhibit, Andy Warhol: Legends from the Cochran Collection, on view at the I.P. Stanback Museum and Planetarium, from Mar. 2 through Apr. 13, 2012. A reception will be held on Mar. 2, starting at 6pm.

The exhibition will offer visitors a rare opportunity to view original artwork by Andy Warhol from the private collection of Wesley and Missy Cochran, in conjunction with photographs from the I.P. Stanback Museum and Planetarium’s collections, donated by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. Warhol was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as Pop Art.

In 2008, The I.P. Stanback Museum and Planetarium applied to participate in The Andy Warhol Photographic Legacy Program honoring the 20th anniversary of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts awarded the I.P. Stanback Museum and Planetarium with original black and white gelatin silver prints and Polaroid photographs which have since emerged into “Warhol in Pictures,” the first time this group of photos will be exhibited.

Andy Warhol: Legends from the Cochran Collection offers a wide sampling of Warhol silkscreens, dating from 1974 through his last series completed in 1986, just prior to his death in 1987. From actor John Wayne (1962) to rock star Mick Jagger (1975), the Cochran Collection embodies Warhol’s cubist-like displacements, doubling outlines and collage-like patterns which explore the relationship between artistic expression and celebrity culture and advertisement.

Andy Warhol, born Andrew Warhola on August 6, 1928 to Slovak immigrants, was reared in a working class suburb of Pittsburgh, PA. At a very young age, Warhol showed an interest in photography and drawing, attending free classes at Carnegie Institute, located in Pittsburgh. The only member of his family to attend college, he entered the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) in 1945 where he majored in pictorial design. Upon graduation, Warhol relocated to New York City where he found steady employment as a commercial artist, working as an illustrator for several magazines including The New Yorker, Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue, as well as creating advertising and window displays for retail stores such as Bonwit Teller and I. Miller. Warhol was one of the most important and influential artists of the 20th century.

Launched in England during the 1950s, Pop Art borrowed popular culture images from movies, comic books and advertising, particularly found on billboards and food packaging. Throughout the 1950s, Warhol enjoyed a successful career as a commercial artist, winning several commendations from the Art Director’s Club and the American Institute of Graphic Arts. During this era, he shortened his name to “Warhol.” With the rapid growth of his career as an illustrator, he formed Andy Warhol Enterprises in 1957.

In 1960, Warhol painted his first works based on comics and advertisements, enlarging and transferring the source images onto his canvases with an opaque projector. This marked a turning point in Warhol’s career. Appropriating images from popular culture, Warhol created many paintings and sculptures that remain icons of 20th century art, such as Brillo, DelMonte, Heinz Boxes, Campbell’s Soup cans, Coca-Cola images, Marilyn Monroe and Elvis series. He also developed Cowboys and Indians series which will be seen in its entirety in this exhibition.

In addition to painting and creating box sculptures, Warhol began working in other mediums including producing the record, “The Velvet Underground,” magazine publishing and filmmaking.

Warhol also produced several paintings in collaboration with other artists, including Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Francesco Clemente. In 1963, Warhol established a studio, famous for his parties, on the fifth floor at 231 East 47th Street in New York City. The “fifth floor” became known as the “Factory” and was wallpapered in aluminum foil, displaying his favorite color, silver.

Following a routine gall bladder surgery, Warhol died of complications during his recovery on February 2, 1987. After his burial in Pittsburgh, his friends and associates organized a memorial mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City on April 1.

The I.P. Stanback Museum and Planetarium’s staff and museum students, while traveling to present at the Association of African-American Museums (AAAM) Conference in Pittsburgh, had the opportunity to visit and explore The Andy Warhol Museum, one of the most comprehensive single-artist museums in the world.

Renovated and reopened on Feb. 23, 2007 after being closed for several years, the I.P. Stanback Museum and Planetarium located on the campus of South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, SC, is an embodiment of SC State University’s commitment to community service enhancing the appreciation of Civil Rights, Arts, Science and Humanities in a single facility. The Stanback is of significant national importance as the only facility of its kind, an interdisciplinary Museum and Planetarium, at any Historically Black College and University and one of few in the country.

Founded in 1896 as a land grant institution with a mission of providing service to the citizens of the state, South Carolina State University has evolved from a small teachers’ college into a major University center of learning and research. Located in Orangeburg, with a student population of some 4,500, South Carolina State offers more than 50 different fields of study on the undergraduate and graduate levels. South Carolina State University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and is a member of the Council of Graduate Schools.

For further information check our SC Institutional Gallery listings, contact Ellen Zisholtz, director, at 803/536-7174 or Ingrid Owens, program manager, at 803/536-8329 or visit (www.scsuCRASH.blogspot.com).

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