#marilyn monroe diptych

[theromanticscrooge]

The Marilyn Portfolio, Untitled Bella Goth, and Professor Venomous' Self Portrait

Marilyn Diptych, Andy Warhol, 1962

After Marilyn Monroe's unfortunate death in 1962, Andy Warhol released the Marilyn Diptych. The base portrait is a cropped, zoomed in reference pulled from a promotional shoot Marilyn posed in for her starring role in the movie Niagara. This portrait was screen-printed 50 times in color to black and white with varying degrees of quality/deterioration. Warhol's intention was to marry commercial art and celebrity culture with the kind of worship and devotional imagery found in churches and Christian art.

The Marilyn Diptych takes part of its inspiration from classic triptychs: multi-panel works depicting religious scenes and figures. Where classic triptychs were made to endorse and deepen someone's faith in God, the Marilyn Diptych was commentary on celebrity worship and how celebrities could and were placed on pedestals similarly to religious figures. The portrait repetition mirrored how often Marilyn was typecast as a "dumb blond" in movie roles. Because of how heightened celebrities are, they are the subject of intense public scrutiny. Their personal lives are as much spectacle and centers of intrigue as the fictitious characters they portray.

Her public image was the blonde bombshell and sex symbol; a fantasy that men lusted after and women both envied and admired. When Marilyn was outed as a scandalous subject because of her past pin-up work or the dicey nature of her movie roles, it only strengthened her image and reputation. Though, the fact her past was placed under such scrutiny and everything about her was subject to similar microscope slide treatment shows how much more Marilyn was seen as a character instead of an actual person. Marilyn wanted her celebrity image to exist as a separate, distinct entity from her personal life. Warhol's various Marilyn works are described as a tribute to Marilyn's desire for just this. Works like Marilyn Diptych are part of the library of iconic imagery that draws attention to Marilyn, but the hope is to redirect and keep focus towards Marilyn the immortalized image instead of the person behind the image.

Marilyn Monroe portfolio, Andy Warhol, 1967

The Marilyn Monroe portfolio series is a popular set of images to pull inspiration from for other derivative art and even art assets in games or shows. The intent behind the Diptych is similar to the inspiration for the Marilyn Monroe portfolio series. Though, the biggest difference is that the portfolio works center more on channeling commercial art and playing with varying color theory. Each of the works can stand separately as an individual piece because of how the dramatically different color schemes can change the mood or theming of the portrait. These weren't made as a deliberate, cohesive whole like the Diptych. That said, the varied, careful, and deliberate approach to color theory sets the portfolio as a striking but convenient set to reference or recreate.

In The Sims 2, the in-game Bella Goth pop art piece Untitled draws inspiration from the Marilyn portfolio series. Not only is the in-game art named after one of the Marilyn portraits, Untitled features a magazine posed and smiling series of Bella Goth in 9 different color variations.

Bella Goth has become an unofficial mascot for the Sims series ever since The Sims 2. In the original Sims, Bella, her husband Mortimer, and their daughter Cassandra were inspired by the classic kooky, creepy, and lovable Addams family. They share the Addams' love for Gothic and the macabre; they dress in darker colors and live in a Victorian flavored mansion next to a prominent graveyard. Most people are also familiar with Gomez and Morticia as a pair of hopeless romantics. Gomez peppers Morticia with shameless flirts and kisses. One of the iconic scenes in the 90's theatrical movies features a series of champagne corks popping off as Gomez dips and deeply kisses his wife. To an extent, Mortimer and Bella are supposed to recapture or echo Gomez and Morticia. Player success in recreating this are varied because of the finicky mood and intensive needs micromanaging Sims requires. If players can kick off successful romantic interactions between Sims, one of the kiss options is 'Passionate,' which features a tender embrace and dramatic music swell. This isn't directly related to Mortimer and Bella, but it isn't a stretch that these two might perform these interactions autonomously on a community lot.

After the Sims, Mortimer and Bella's relationship becomes muddied. Where Mortimer and Bella could be seen as a do-not-separate unit before, Bella easily overshadows Mortimer or the other Goths as a notable figure in her own right. In the PSP spin-off for Sims 2, Bella confides in the player that she only married her husband for the money and was in the process of running away from him period. In the mainline Sims 2 for PC, Bella has mysteriously disappeared. In-game bread crumbs point towards alien abduction, potential meddling from Bella's freshly-introduced sister-in-law that has convenient family ties with aliens, and Bella's prominent feature in the art for the paranormal-flavored and Area 51-inspired neighborhood Strangetown.

Game devs wrote an official Q and A with the Bella in Strangetown on the unfortunately-retired Sims 2 site. This Q and A was dropping further breadcrumbs about nefarious actors trying to use her as a means to get to Mortimer's neon green life-extending potion. There's no direct confirmation as to the why behind Bella's abduction, let alone concrete details on what happened after. Everything is a series of vague hints; pieces that the player strings together for their own personal soap opera. Overall, Bella's disappearance is something that has fascinated and enraptured players for years. There's still people writing stories, speculating, and drumming up theories about her 20 years later!

In game, Bella is portrayed as a beloved and highly charismatic socialite. She's a local celebrity. Artists are so enchanted by her that she has several pieces of in-universe art and sculpture modeled after and made in tribute to her specifically. Placing Bella as the subject for an art piece inspired by Warhol's Marilyn Monroe portraits is a stroke of genius. Bella is an iconic, larger-than-life figure among her in-universe admirers and Sims enthusiasts alike. The mystery around her catapulted her from fun pre-made character to such an established character in Sims canon that players expect some news about her or some hint at her presence in every existing Sims game, past and upcoming. She's beautiful, she's tragic, and she's such a mystery. Because of how few details players have to work with or piece together, Bella captures the imagination and plays with the theater of the mind. Regardless of how effective Simmers may consider Bella's story, it's become a front-and-center example for the storytelling potential a Sims game can have.

Marilyn is described as the postergirl for Hollywood glamour and part of celebrity culture. She has a very iconic look: heavy lidded eyes, sculpted bob, and red lips. Bella is considered fashionable and glamorous. While there has been some variation in her hair color, she's best known for her classic red dress. No matter how Bella's design or fashion is changed to try and keep pace with changing trends, the red dress is a staple. Red is Bella's trademark. In a fitting way, Bella is the immortal icon of the Sims world. She may have an official playable Sim in Sims 4, but her presence as a figure in Sims 2 will always eclipse or influence every following iteration of her in some way, shape, form, or respect.

(I included Boxman's set of Darrell portraits here as a potential nod to the triptych inspiration behind the original Diptych.)

There's also a Marilyn Diptych inspired portrait of Professor Venomous in the cartoon O.K. K.O. This portrait is prominently featured on his wall whether its at his house or in his personal office at Boxmore. Lord Boxman has a repurposed version of Michaelangelo's famous Creation of Adam mural placing himself in the role of God and his robot kids as the 'Adam' or otherwise reaching out towards him. This repurposed art is a cheeky nod towards Boxman expressing sentiments like 'I am your god!' to his first robot Mr. Logic and how much emphasis he places on the power trip he holds as the Boxbots' dad. Given the context of the original Marilyn portfolio, the Professor's variant might be part of his attempt to reconstruct himself and his self-image. The Marilyn portraits depict a very specific version of her; a very careful and highly curated image.

As soon as viewers learn about his alter-ego Shadowy Figure, the Professor tries to present the split as a Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde situation. Professor Venomous is his smooth-talking, level-headed, and reasonable public image. He has moments of being obnoxious or showing some irritation, but he usually tries to school his expressions. There's some level of restraint and control. Shadowy Figure is openly cruel and sadistic. He's the culmination of the more impulsive and desperate things Venomous wants to do: In his previous role as Laserblast, he was publicly reamed for suggesting inventions like a ray that permanently debilitates super powers, shrinks someone to subatomic level, or other obvious harm. He's openly evil as the Professor, but still feels some need to protect his image and reputation. He's still a very private and guarded person. At the very least, the increased secrecy as Shadowy Figure is an extra layer to make it harder to trace anything Venomous-related back to Laserblast and reveal his big secret.

Narrative ties aside, the Professor's portrait is also an interesting parallel to some of the art direction choices around him. Marilyn Monroe was considered a sex symbol. As Laserblast, he was called 'the hot hero' in a newspaper headline for his obituary. Otherwise, the Professor was given an elevator eyes treatment from Lord Boxman. That scene can be argued as a POV camera that's similarly applied to Boxman from Venomous' perspective and again applied in a ship-bait scene between Enid and Red Action. There's also the how-did-this-slip-past-censors scene where the Professor is leaning back in his office chair, legs spread, and slight drool dripping from his mouth. That scene has the same energy as a sex appeal fan service camera in most anime. The camera is full-on ogling Venomous here. This move was as deliberate as Studio Bones turning a Reigen Arataka undress and shower scene into something more dramatic and theatrical than the mundane, candid shot it is in the manga it was adapted from. At least Reigen's scene has a layer of irony to it; it's a Poe's Law situation where viewers aren't 100% sure if the fan service approach is a joke or earnest.

It's not an appropriate one-to-one comparison to Marilyn's sex symbol status, but it's interesting to look at both the cartoon's portrayal of Professor Venomous as well as fan reception. He's part of the ever-growing library of Tumblr sexymen and given draco in leather pants treatment. In a roundabout way, the Professor's pop art portrait is a reflection of the complicated commentary around Marilyn and what dialogue the portfolio and other works have drummed up about her image and celebrity culture in general. Characters like the Professor can drum up interesting conversations about how 'sexy' villains are portrayed, how that might impact the way people interact with the story/media they are from, and what it says about the play between someone's looks vs their actions. In the Professor's case, his looks arguably help drum up more sympathy than he might get otherwise. The bigger part of his particular story is about reputation and public image than physical appearance, though. Even when he has a come-to-Jesus moment with his ex, he has a moment of L'oreal model pout, but that doesn't stop Carol from attacking him or demanding answers.

In a nutshell, it's interesting to pick out a Marilyn-inspired self-portrait as part of the Professor's decor. Looking at the history or commentary around Warhol's Marilyn portraits, there's strong emphasis on her identity as a cultural icon vs who she was in private. The commentary centers on her lack of privacy; she's not allowed to have a separate life outside of being a celebrity. Profesor Venomous' portrait borrows this commentary and applies it to his ongoing struggle with identity. He managed to escape a role that didn't fit his values or personal self-image, but he still felt forced to create and maintain a new identity. There was always some tug of war between his private self and how he wanted to portray his public image. The other example pulled from Sims 2 highlights the difference between Bella Goth as a grand mystery vs the mundane Sim she is when she's actually playable.

Regardless of what someone thinks of the original Warhol Marilyn works, there can be some nugget of intriguing character writing or other commentary when a character is deliberately centered in their own Marilyn-esque portfolio.

[rscroogedraws]

Thumbnail for my latest video!

[terr25]

This images above shows a famous comparison between a black-and-white photograph of Marilyn Monroe on the left and Andy Warhol’s iconic screen print of Monroe on the right. Warhol’s artwork, part of his Marilyn Diptych series, used a vibrant pop art style, characterized by bold colors and repetition. This piece is one of Warhol’s most recognized works, which highlights Monroe’s status as a cultural icon and explores themes of celebrity, consumerism, and mortality. The image below is an original version and the above, I used photoshop by using Al to add a necklace around Marilyn’s neck to make herself more stylish in the black and white part and I added a crown on her head to make her feel royal in the color part. If I had more time, I would add makeup on her face to see how she looks with it, probably she will look more feminine.

•https://www.lehmannstrobel.com/appropriateness-of-appropriating-appropriation-art/

https://www.behance.net/search/

https://www.artedguru.com/home

style-and-culture

https://www.parkwestgallery.com/

different-artists-da-vinci-mona-lisa/

[finleyclark99]

To what extent does Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Diptych illustrate F.R. Leavis’ fears concerning Mechanical Reproduction?

To answer this question with any degree of certainty we must first approach the concept of mechanical reproduction in the context of F.R. Leavis’ understanding of cultural theory; once this has been established, we can outline Leavis’ fears concerning this concept and begin to draw parallels between these ideas and Andy Warhol’s seminal piece: Marilyn Diptych. Released in 1962 Marilyn Diptych presents a distinctly biographical narrative of the life and death of celebrity actress Marilyn Monroe, encouraging a critical interpretation of the polarising disparity between the two sides of the piece considering the then late stars recent expected suicide (Banner, 2012, p.411). Marilyn Diptych is a calculated critique of the post-war consumer culture that was fuelled by the mechanical production and blasé consumption of products and cultural texts on a scale never seen before. Warhol’s careful analysis of the environment that produced the icon of Marilyn Monroe is obvious here; whether Warhol was conscious of, and explicitly illustrating Leavis’ fears and ideas however, is another story – and one that in the following paragraphs we will be analysing and addressing.

The invention or perhaps birth of a cultural landscape dominated by mindless production and consumption of ‘thwarted and incoherent’ (Leavis, cited in Storey, 2006 p.14), cultural texts mentioned above was feared particularly by F.R. Leavis, who in 1930 defined culture as ‘the finest human experience of the past’; something that is guarded and perpetuated by a ‘minority’ and of which the ‘consciousness of the race’ is constituted (cited in Storey, 2006, p.13-14). This rather archaic understanding of culture, borrowed from the likes of Matthew Arnold, presents one of Leavis’ core beliefs: that ‘the twentieth century is marked by an increasing cultural decline’. Based on this definition and understanding of culture then it is clear to see why mechanical reproduction would have instilled great fear in Leavis, and a ‘Leavisite’ (Storey, 2001, p.23) definition of mechanical reproduction emerges: mechanical reproduction (or simply ‘the machine’), refers to the ‘process of mass-production and standardisation’ of cultural texts, whereby the power and influence of them (and the minority that defines them) is threatened and undermined. Leavis fears that this process will be accompanied by a great ‘levelling-down’ of art and culture that will render ‘active use of the mind more difficult’, injuring the ‘standard of living’ of the individual and more importantly ‘debasing and inflating’ the cultural currency that, in Leavis’ mind, is most valuable to civilisation. It is perhaps Leavis’ greatest fear, however, that the victims of mass-culture and mechanical reproduction will become purely ‘passive’ consumer creatures; surrendering ‘under conditions of hypnotic receptivity to the cheapest emotional appeals [that are] associated with a compellingly vivid illusion of actual life’, ultimately becoming slaves to the commercial entities that rule and drive this ‘machine’ (cited in Storey, 2006, p.13-14).

Throughout Marilyn Diptych we can see references to the idea of mechanical reproduction, indeed the form itself is indicative of this as we see the iconic source image of Marilyn Monroe repeated 50 times over, here Warhol is ‘reinforcing [Monroe’s] status as a consumer product’, emphasising her ‘commodity status’ (Kleiner, 2009, p.428) as the method of repetition is reminiscent of that of the factory conveyor belt, which when paired with Warhol’s choice of name for his studio: ‘The Factory’ (Guggenheim, 1999), becomes an obvious reference to the concept of ‘mass-production and standardisation’ that was feared by Leavis (cited in Storey, 2006, p.13). The number of iterations of the source image is significant too as it matches the number of states in the USA, which works to highlight the fact that at the time of release the myth and ‘vivid illusion of [an] actual life’ of Marilyn Monroe dominated the ‘consciousness’ (Leavis, cited in Storey, 2006, p.13) of the American public. Indeed the entirety of Marilyn Diptych can be interpreted as a twisted incantation of the American flag, a warning to onlookers of the dangers of secular celebrity worship and the realities of their living a split-life; one of which that is dominated by the glamorous illusion displayed to the public, as seen portrayed by the vivid bright colours on the left-hand side of the diptych, and the private personal reality that is shown as it’s opposite on the right side of the piece, indicating a dark, hidden reality that only becomes obvious in light of the subject’s tragic, early, drug induced death. An injury to the ‘standard of living’ is obvious here for Marilyn Monroe specifically, who through the process of being commodified lost her individual identity, and evidently suffered greatly. This can even be taken a step further, as the unexpected death of Monroe in 1962 triggered a doubling in the suicide rate in Los Angeles (Banner, 2012, p.427) thus illustrating this grave injury and highlighting the ‘hypnotic receptivity’ of the ‘passive’ consumer in their reaction to the death of their icon. Consumers who, instead of employing ‘active use of the mind’ to question the cultural and societal environment that led to Marilyn’s death, reacted as martyrs – choosing suicide rather than re-evaluating the worship of their secular religious icon and the ‘machine’ that manufactured it (Leavis, cited in Storey, 2006, p.14). It is fair to say that Leavis feared through the mechanical reproduction of art and cultural texts that the elitist intellectuals (himself included) would be undermined and made essentially redundant in their defining and perpetuation of high art and high culture, which would allow for the first time a new, accessible, ‘mass-art’ to emerge, as Alloway writes in 1958:

The elite, accustomed to set aesthetic standards, has found that it no longer possesses the power to dominate all aspects of art. It is in this situation that we need to consider the arts of the mass media. It is impossible to see them clearly within a code of aesthetics associated with minorities with pastoral and upper-class ideas because mass art is urban and democratic.

It is clear to us that Warhol was creating and spearheading a new breed of art that was accessible not only to the ‘vanguard’ of society and not operating ‘within a code of aesthetics associated with [the] minorities [and their] pastoral … upper-class ideas (Richards, cited in Leavis, 1930). Warhol was instead appealing to the masses, hence the defining term for his work: pop-art. Leavis spoke of this ‘overthrow of standard’ that would ‘debase and inflate’ the cultural currency, constituting a ‘catastrophe’ for the existence of high-art and high-culture, and indeed he was right – the secluded and elitist world of fine art was being threatened by Warhol’s revolutionary work. This work however allowed – for perhaps time in the history of modern art – the general public, uneducated in the nuances of artistic analysis the ability to understand and appreciate fine art, relating to its subject and receiving its message: that the contemporary culture they perpetuated and subscribed to killed Marilyn Monroe, implying as Leavis states a ‘responsiveness to [art] and … philosophy … [that] may affect the sense of the human situation and of the nature of life’ (cited in Storey, 2006, p.13).

It is clear then to see that the presentation and reception of Marilyn Diptych does illustrate, and to a certain extent prove Leavis’ fears regarding mechanical reproduction and mass-culture theory – however, as seen reflected in the wake of the critical and public response and acceptance of Marilyn Diptych, the ‘power and influence’ of cultural texts has by no means been undermined and the currency of culture has been enriched, usuring in a new era of popular art that is available and accessible to the individual. In addition to this, by bringing the reality of Marilyn Monroe’s story to light through the medium of art it encouraged the ‘passive’ consumer to engage ‘active use’ of their mind to understand the message and warning Warhol was putting across: to be aware of the ‘vivid illusion of actual life’ portrayed by the polarising two-faced nature of celebrity culture, and to be wary of the cultural landscape that allowed such realities to emerge and thrive.

1

Bibliography

ArtSpace (2020) Anatomy of an Artwork ‘Marilyn Diptych, 1962’ by Andy Warhol https://www.artspace.com/magazine/art_101/in_depth/anatomy-of-an-artwork-marilyn-diptych-1962-by-andy-warhol-56500

(Accessed: 10 Oct 2022)

Banner, L. (2012) Marilyn: The Passion and the Paradox, Bloomsbury, USA

Guggenheim, (1999) Andy Warhol: A Factory, https://www.guggenheim.org/exhibition/andy-warhol-a-factory

Kleiner, F.S (2010) Gardner’s Art Though The Ages, 13th Edition, Boston, Wadsworth

Leavis, F. R. (1930) Mass Civilisation and Minority Culture. Cambridge: Minority Press.

Larsen, E. (n.d.) The Work of Art in The Age of Mechanical Reproduction https://campuspress.yale.edu/modernismlab/the-work-of-art-in-the-age-of-mechanical-reproduction/

(Accessed: 10 Oct 2022)

Strinati, D. (1995) An Introduction to theories of Popular Culture. London: Routledge.

Storey, J. (2006) Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An Introduction, Harlow, Pearson Education

Storey, J. (2001) Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An Introduction, Harlow, Pearson Education

Walter, B. (1969, translated by Harry Zohn, from the 1935 essay) The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction. New York: Schocken Books.

[arttheory2024]

2.2 Artworld

Utilizing Danto’s “The Artworld” as a framework, I want to address Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Diptych (1962). This work consists of two silver canvases with screen printed images of Marilyn Monroe, one side in color, the other in black and white. Danto may initially evaluate this work as memetic (or an imitation) of the real Marilyn. This imitation, however, does not discredit Warhol’s work as art; in fact, due to the precedent of the invention of photography allowing for the accreditation of imitation of reality as art. In Danto’s theory, the collective past of the artworld is imperative to explaining the allowances and new definitions of what constitutes art throughout time (Danto, 1964). Marilyn Diptych (1962) can be considered art because of the past works that came before it. Additionally, Danto argued that works, once accepted into the artworld, cannot be separated from their galleries or they will lose their art quality (Danto, 1964). These two canvases must remain considered within their gallery, otherwise they lose their quality as a work. 

Marilyn Diptych (1962) raises many questions for me. Is the idea of celebrity itself a mimic of a real person? Can a celebrity ever project an image that is entirely genuine to who they are as a person? There may not have been a “real” Marilyn Monroe. With this work, Warhol seems to emphasize the mimetic nature of celebrity through Marilyn’s image. Repeatedly displaying her face can represent a loss of reality and individualism through repetition. Does the fading nature of the second canvas make Warhol’s work “more” of an artwork due to its aesthetic nature, now including a smear of ink and fading gradation? The pristine nature of the first canvas alone may have been too much of a facsimile to appear quite as artistic. Additionally, does the degradation of the second canvas represent the toll celebrity status may take on a person? Overall, Warhol’s Marilyn Diptych (1962) is a fascinating work under the scrutiny of Danto’s Artworld theory. Warhol’s choice of using Marilyn’s iconic image in art creates questions regarding imitation and reality through the lens of celebrity status. 

Andy Warhol, Marilyn Diptych, 1962

References

Danto, A. (1964). The Artworld. The Journal of Philosophy, 61(19), 571–584. https://doi.org/10.2307/2022937

[createsketchbookscf]

Virtual Sketchbook #2

JOURNALING

Variety in art keeps things fresh by changing up what type of techniques are used. By doing so this stop things from looking the same or feeling bland. I see variety in my everyday life in many things. One example would be what I have for breakfast. I like to change it up everyday to not get bored of eating the same thing.

Balance in art is how the visual weight shapes the artwork. You can change the feeling of the piece depending on the balance. If you go for a more symmetrical things with look more even and light. If you use more of an asymmetrical approach this could make the piece feel heavy and off putting.

The Ghent Altarpiece by Van Eyck is a good example of balance. We see symmetrical balance being used in here. It has a mirrored look that brings your eyes up to the goat and the sun.

Unity in art is when everything works together. It has a harmony between the colors to the textures and even the shapes that are all consistent with each other. An example that I can see this being in everyday life is cooking. Even though you have so many different elements you can find a way to combine them to create one cohesive and consistent outcome.

Emphasis in art is when it's made to lead your eye in the direction the artists wants by creating a focal point. This is possible by using placement, lines, colors, and sizes to catch your eye.

Simeon's Song of Praise by Rembrandt is a good example on emphasis. He uses color to highlight where he wants your eyes to be drawn too. Showing the importance of their new child

Repetition in art is when you want to use the same techniques in your piece to give consistency and reinforce your theme. This could be done with lines, colors, and shapes.

Marilyn Diptych by Andy Warhol is an example of this. You see elements repeating through out the piece. This lets the theme of Marilyn Monroe stay consistent

Scale in art is then the artist changes the size of an object. This can help your piece look more realistic by having accurate sizes of objects around. Or this could emphasize emotion or draw your attention by changing the shape. It's all about manipulating proportions to give the effect you want. Mount Rushmore would be a real world example. Showing significance and important in these people from the size they were sculpted.

WRITING AND LOOKING

The Last Supper by Enrique Cabrera and Leonardo da Vinci

From the horizon line of the table this gives a feeling of them being more forward. This with the variety of shapes being used makes this piece pleasing to look at. He does this with the rectangles on the back and sides of the wall to give more depth and consistency. Jesus himself is in a triangle shape in the middle of the image and the only person wearing red. This is a use of emphasis for a viewer to focus on Jesus in the middle. There's also a use a balance in the painting. He used symmetrical balance to keep you focused in the middle on the piece.

CONNECTING ART TO YOUR WORLD

Color is a big decider in what I wear and purchase throughout my day. Recently I've only been wearing hues of black and blue since that is what most of my wardrobe consists of at this moment. But I want to expand my options by purchasing clothing that have values that are more saturated in color. I recently purchased an intense hue of red jacket that I'm looking forward to wearing. The right hue even decides what foods I sometimes get. The more saturated the packaging or the item itself is. The more I consider purchasing it. If I had to pick a color scheme for my life it would be blue and black.

ART PROJECT – ARTIST’S CHOICE

PHOTO/DESIGN

Group 4: INTERACTIVE DESIGN

Interactive design allows for users to engage with the product. Making it match more to what the user wants.

Top Five Interactive Designs, According to me

*Spotify https://open.spotify.comLinks to an external site.

*YouTube https://www.youtube.comLinks to an external site.

*Instagram https://www.instagram.comLinks to an external site.

*Google Maps https://www.google.com/mapsLinks to an external site.

*Wordle https://www.nytimes.com/games/wordle/index.htmlLinks to an external site.

My favorite interactive design out of these options is Spotify. A good interactive design to me is when the app or website can learn what you enjoy and recommend similar things to you. This keeps you entertained and shows you things you might have never seen without this feature. The intent of Spotify is to give users access to music and podcasts, with also allowing you to personalize many aspects of your account to for better enjoyment. It has fulfilled its purpose. By giving custom made playlists fitting to your wants and free access to their library of entertainment for users. This is why Spotify is my favorite interactive design.

[riccardoconcetti]

Andy Warhol, figura di punta della Pop Art, ha sfidato le convenzioni artistiche con il suo stile innovativo e provocatorio. Nato nel 1928 a Pittsburgh, ha esplorato temi di consumismo e celebrità attraverso tecniche di riproduzione di massa come la serigrafia. Criticato per la sua apparente superficialita, Warhol ha, tuttavia, sollevato importanti domande sulla cultura moderna e sul

valore dell'arte.

Un esempio emblematico è il

"Marilyn Diptych" del 1962, che ritrae Marilyn Monroe ripetuta cinquanta volte. Questo lavoro, creato subito dopo la morte dell'attrice, esplora la natura effimera della fama e la dicotomia tra l'immagine pubblica e la realtà personale. Il contrasto tra i pannelli colorati e quelli sbiaditi suggerisce la fragilità della celebrita, rendendo l'opera una potente riflessione sulla

cultura delle icone e la mortalità.

#riccardoconcetti. #riccardoconcettipesaro. #andywarhol

[marilynspopart]

Resumo das características da obra "Marilyn Diptych" e algumas informações do Andy Warhol e suas técnicas artísticas para realizar um dos quadros mais famosos do movimento PopArt que influenciou toda a história da arte e eternizou uma grande artísta, Marilyn Monroe.

[oliviagggraceartblog]

Marilyn Diptych, Andy Warhol, 1962

Soon after Marilyn Monroe passed away on August 5, 1962, from a heroin overdose, Warhol painted her for the first time. Warhol's original image was a publicity shot from her 1953 film Niagara. The Marilyn Diptych contrasts the public and private lives of the star, who was at the time among the most well-known women in the world, by using two different canvases. Though it's possible that Warhol had other intentions. Two silver canvases with fifty silkscreened images of Marilyn Monroe each makeup Andy Warhol's Marilyn Diptych. Upon initial observation, the piece seems to be inviting us to adore the mythical figure, whose likeness Warhol took from popular culture and turned into an artwork. The apparent carelessness with which the paint is applied, as well as its "allover composition"—the even distribution of form and colour across the entire canvas, so that the viewer's eyes wander without focusing on one spot—are both hallmarks of Abstract Expressionism, as exemplified by Jackson Pollock's drip paintings. Yet, like Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg, whose work he admired, Warhol uses photographic imagery, the silkscreen process, and repetition to create art that is not about his interior life, but rather about the culture in which he lived.

Warhol's use of the silkscreen technique "flattens" the star's face even further. The artist suspends the actress in an abstract nothingness by screening vast expanses of unmodulated colour and removing the subtle gradation that produces a feeling of three-dimensional volume. Warhol converts the actual flatness of the paper-thin marketing photo into an emotional "flatness," and the actress into a kind of robot, through these choices. In this way, the picture implies that "Marilyn Monroe," a manufactured star with a made-up name, is only a one-dimensional (sex) symbol—perhaps not the best object of our nearly religious devotion.

Tina Rivers Ryan. (2015). Warhol, Marilyn Diptych. [Online]. Khan Academy. Available at: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/later-europe-and-americas/modernity-ap/a/warho [Accessed 25 October 2023].

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/later-europe-and-americas/modernity-ap/a/warho

[ervinafindy]

Inspires imagination: Denny Ja displays the work of Warhol which is enhanced with AI technology

Art has always been a medium of expression that invites observers to reflect on the meaning behind a work. However, how far the work of art can arouse imagination and make observers ponder deeper? Denny JA, an Indonesian artist and businessman, took action to present works of art that could arouse the imagination of people, through an exhibition titled "Warhol X Denny JA: A Technological Collaboration". This exhibition was held at the Indonesian National Gallery on December 1-10, 2021. This exhibition features iconic art works by American artists, Andy Warhol, who have been renewed and perfected with AI technology. Warhol is known as one of the most famous artists in the 20th century, and his works include pictures, photos and films that show celebrity faces, consumption objects, and political and social themes. In this exhibition, Denny JA used AI technology to give a creative touch to some of Warhol's works. AI technology makes it possible to update, clarify, create unique visual effects, and highlight important elements in Warhol's works. The first work discussed in this exhibition was "Marilyn Diptych" made by Warhol in 1962. This work consisted of two panels, and in each panel there was a row of Marilyn Monroe's face, one of the Hollywood icons of his time. In the first panel, Denny JA uses AI technology to produce a broken glass effect on the faces of Monroe's face. This gives a dramatic impression and contains a message that everyone has a fragile side and is easily broken in them. The second panel of "Marilyn Diptych" becomes more unique with AI's basis. Denny Ja added the effects of lines and shapes on the face of the monroe to produce the impression of abstraction. This shows that everyone has a mysterious and complex side that may be difficult to understand or explain. Apart from "Marilyn Diptych", Denny Ja also presents the original work of Warhol "Campbell's Soup II" which depicts American franchise Supur cans, Campbell's. In this work, Denny Ja uses AI technology to clear every detail in Warhol's work. AI technology allows images that are initially blurred vision, to be sharper and clearer. It also shows that every object that we often see and use, can be part of an arty and interesting aesthetic element. The last work presented in this exhibition is the "Electric Chair", Warhol's work inspired by photos of executions published in print media in the 1950s and 1960s. In this work, Denny Ja uses AI technology to produce 3D image effects and shadow effects that show clearer and more scary details. This not only gives a new sensation to Warhol's original work, but can also teach us about the roles and advances of contemporary multimedia. The works of art presented at the "Warhol X Denny Ja: A Technological Collaboration" exhibition combines classic aesthetic ideals and sophisticated technology. Denny Ja and his team designed a work that aroused the imagination of the observer, inviting them to see further the meaning behind a work of art. AI technology only becomes a "tool" to perfect, produce new effects, and offers a new perspective on classic works. However, the creative touch of Dany Ja and his team produced new ideas, interesting artwork and able to arouse imagination.

Check more: inspire imagination: Denny JA displays the work of Warhol which is enhanced with AI technology

[theromanticscrooge]

This started as a shower thought about a background detail in O.K. K.O. and became something I felt an urgent need to discuss further…

[v3nusfairy11]

'Marilyn Diptych' - 1962, Andy Warhol

A diptych is a form in which a painting can be presented, held together by hinges. This is often seen in a place of worship, used as a 'shrine' to a particular religious symbol, to commemorate them. Warhol made this piece a few years after Marilyn Monroes death, to communicate the public and private life of the star. Half of which are displayed in colour, using Warhols infamous silk screen technique, which allowed him to produce the same image repeatedly, which in this case, originated from a publicity photo of Monroe for the film 'Niagra' - 1953.

The Silkscreen process also called Serigraphy 'a design is cut out of paper or another thin, strong material and then printed by rubbing, rolling, or spraying paint or ink through the cut out areas.' - Brittanica It first appeared in 1900 and was originally used in graphic design and advertising. The meaning of this piece is shown in the colour and quality of the images, we see on the right, that Marilyn is depicted in colour, with her perfectly applied lipstick, glistening smile and bright blonde hair. On the left, all colour is drained from the images, perhaps to reflect how the star felt in her private life. The second row is completely smudged and obscures her famous features, the amount of paint lessens row after row almost creating a ghost, also creating a connection between the art and Monroes mental health, suggested through the work that she left the world a ghost of herself.

Bibliography

The National Gallery. (2023). Diptychs. [Online]. nationalgallery.org.uk. Available at: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/glossary/diptychs#:~:text=A%20diptych%20is%20a%20painti [Accessed 31 October 2023].

Leman. (2020). Art Critique on The Marilyn Diptych by Andy Warhol. [Online]. medium.com. Last Updated: August 11, 2020. Available at: https://medium.com/@leman1/art-critique-on-the-marilyn-diptych-by-andy-warhol-bddfe9b7f024 [Accessed 31 October 2023].

Tate. (2023). Andy Warhol Marilyn Diptych 1962. [Online]. tate.org.uk. Available at: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/warhol-marilyn-diptych-t03093 [Accessed 31 October 2023].

Britannica. (2023). silkscreen. [Online]. britannica.com. Last Updated: Sep 21, 2023. Available at: https://www.britannica.com/technology/silkscreen [Accessed 31 October 2023].

[creativeenquirylynnbowers]

Andy Warhol - Marilyn Diptych (1962)

Another example of a repetitive motif, Warhol's artwork depicting Marilyn Monroe. It is also an example of each repeated element being slightly different, although that's the nature of the medium.

[jubaer01]

Art Jigsaw Puzzles

Art puzzles for adultsare a perfect way to relax after a busy day. Not only do they take away stress, they can also be a great way to delve into the work of some of the greatest artists of all time. So why not choose one of our incredibly detailed, beautifully illustrated jigsaws and enjoy some time to yourself?

Andy Warhol's Marilyn Diptych

Marilyn Diptych is one of Andy Warhol's greatest artworks. The silkscreen painting was created four months after the actress's death. It's a great tribute to Marilyn Monroe.

It's a satirical look at the way modern society consumes and idolizes celebrity. Warhol used images instantly identifiable by the general public. He also paid attention to the aesthetic. His use of color was an important part of his work. The two silver canvases that make up the Marilyn Diptych are a homage to the materiality of the art. The right side of the painting features an image in black and white and a grid of similar images in silver.

The grid mimics the contact sheet of a photographer. Interestingly, this is not the only grid based artwork that Warhol has made.

Diego Velazquez's Las Meninas

Velazquez's Las Meninas is a painting that is considered to be one of the most significant works in Western art history. This famous painting portrays a court scene in the court of King Philip IV of Spain.

The painting has been highly debated among artists and historians. Some argue that the image of a royal couple is not representative of the real people, while others argue that it shows representation.

A major characteristic of Velazquez's work is his use of chiaroscuro. He used a limited palette to create this effect.

Las Meninas is also a painting that is full of metaphor. One of the most notable is the mirror, which plays a huge role in the composition. It is near the center of the composition and adds a stereoscopic effect to the picture.

Frank Lloyd Wright's "Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird"

The Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird by Frida Kahlo is a popular painting. It features the artist's signature hairdo, bushy eyebrows, and a figure eight pattern of hummingbird wings.

In addition to being a work of art, the painting also has meaning. It represents both the artist's personal life and Mexican culture. This is one of the 55 self-portraits that Kahlo painted during her lifetime.

Although Frida Kahlo was a renowned artist, she had a tough life. She suffered from an early divorce from Diego Rivera. After she divorced him, she struggled financially. As a result, she turned to painting to express herself. Her paintings depict the thorn necklace and hummingbird as symbols of her pain. Another interpretation is that the necklace relates to her relationship with Diego. But the hummingbird represents the idea of eternity.

Frederic William Burton's "The Meeting on the Turret Stairs"

Frederic William Burton's 'The Meeting on the Turret Stairs' is a painting that captures the tragic love between Hildebrand and Hellelil. The story of these lovers' forbidden relationship is retold in a medieval Danish ballad.

'The Meeting on the Turrets' is one of the most popular works by Sir Frederic William Burton. Despite its modest appearance, it has a strong emotional impact. It is based on a medieval Danish ballad and depicts the final meeting between the two lovers.

When Burton was a young boy, he was forced to use his left hand to paint. He had suffered an unexplained injury to his right arm. But he managed to overcome the disadvantages of his childhood by developing a style that allowed him to use both his hands.

Pomegranate's jigsaw puzzles

Pomegranate makes some of the best jigsaw puzzles on the market. The company has a long track record of producing award winning books and games, with a strong emphasis on quality. Its flagship brand, Pomegranate Interactive Entertainment, produces knowledge cards and game decks to name a few. Located in San Francisco, the company has been around for the better part of 15 years. They have a knack for the big idea and are constantly introducing new concepts to their ever expanding product line.

Pomegranate is also a family-owned company. Their jigsaws are made of the highest quality materials and are packaged in handsome boxes. They have the distinction of being among the top manufacturers of award winning books in the world. A family friendly atmosphere and a healthy dose of philanthropy make for an excellent work environment.

[taylorswiftarthistories]

Marilyn Diptych by Andy Warhol, 1962 / "The Lucky One" by Taylor Swift

[blueiscoool]

Andy Warhol's 1964 Portrait of Marilyn Monroe Sells a $195 Million

One of Andy Warhol's iconic Marilyn Monroe portraits has become the most expensive 20th-century artwork ever to go under the hammer.

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.

Prior to the sale, Christie's had described "Shot Sage Blue Marilyn" as "one of the rarest and most transcendent images in existence." It has previously been shown at galleries including the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Centre Pompidou in Paris and London's Tate Modern.

The auction house had initially said it was expecting bids "in the region of" $200 million.

Warhol's colorful reproductions of Monroe's photo portrait -- originally a publicity still from her 1953 movie "Niagara" -- are among his most recognizable works, alongside his signature paintings of Campbell's soup cans.

Using a technique called silkscreen printing, which duplicates images on paper or canvas using a layer of fine-mesh silk like a stencil, he began creating them in 1962, shortly after Monroe's death. As with his depictions of other famous figures, including Elvis Presley and Chinese leader Mao Zedong, the Pop artist created numerous versions of Monroe's portrait in various different colors and configurations.

Among the best-known is "Marilyn Diptych," owned by British gallery group Tate, which saw Warhol print a grid of 50 portraits across two canvases. Elsewhere, the Museum of Modern Art's "Gold Marilyn Monroe" features a single image printed against a gold background, while "Shot Marilyns" saw the artist shooting portraits of the star through the head with bullets.

In 1964, he developed a "more refined and time-intensive" new process that was "antithetical to the mass production he was best known for," according to Christie's. That year, he used it to create a limited number of portraits -- a rare group of works to which "Shot Sage Blue Marilyn" belongs -- before abandoning the technique.

While a handful of paintings are thought to have attracted price tags in excess of $200 million in private sales (including works by the Abstract Expressionist painters Willem de Kooning and Jackson Pollock), the feat has only once been achieved at auction -- by Leonardo da Vinci's "Salvator Mundi," which in 2017 sold for over $450 million. The previous auction record for a 20th-century painting was the $179.4 million paid for Pablo Picasso's "Les Femmes d'Alger (Version O)" in 2015.

The auction record for a Warhol work was previously held by "Silver Car Crash (Double Disaster)," which depicts the mangled aftermath of a road collision and sold for more than $105 million almost a decade ago. Several of the artist's other Marilyn images have also attracted huge sum at auction in recent years, with 1962's "White Marilyn" selling for $41 million in New York in 2014.

"Shot Sage Blue Marilyn," meanwhile, was owned by a succession of high-profile gallerists and collectors before being purchased by the late Swiss art dealer Thomas Ammann. The portrait was offered for auction by the Thomas and Doris Ammann Foundation Zurich, the charitable organization set up in his (and his sister's) name, which will use the proceeds to fund health and education programs for children worldwide, according to a press release.

n a press statement prior to the sale, Christie's chairman of 20th and 21st century art, Alex Rotter, described the work as "the absolute pinnacle of American Pop" and "the most significant 20th century painting to come to auction in a generation."

"Standing alongside Botticelli's 'Birth of Venus,' Da Vinci's 'Mona Lisa' and Picasso's 'Les Demoiselles d'Avignon,' Warhol's 'Marilyn' is categorically one of the greatest paintings of all time," he added.

The artwork was one of four Warhols in the Ammanns' collection on sale at Monday evening's auction. One of his famous "Flowers" silkscreen paintings went for $15.8 million, and "GE/Skull," which he created in collaboration with the late Jean-Michel Basquiat, fetched over $4.6 million. Warhol's sculpture "Heinz Tomato Ketchup Box" meanwhile sold for more than $478,000.

Elsewhere, works by Robert Ryman, Alberto Giacometti and Lucian Freud also went under the hammer. Two of the biggest sellers were paintings by American artist Cy Twombly, "Untitled" and "Venere Sopra Gaeta," which fetched $21 million and almost $17 million respectively.