In these never-before-released photographs, New York’s Affirmation Arts Gallery offers a glimpse into Andy Warhol’s private life. We see his friends, his personal belongings, and a life made rich by more than parties.
Since his death 25 years ago, we’ve grown accustomed to celebrating Andy Warhol for his eccentric, colorful portraits of high society—a society of which Warhol was himself a member. The photographs on display at Warhol: Confections & Confessions are precious documents of his private and daily life, a far cry from the swanky New York clubs and persona that the artist so carefully composed; despite his pretensions to excess, Warhol had little taste for drugs and alcohol.
We admire these simple images showing a laid-back Warhol with a beaming smile, rollerskating, surrounded by strangers and artist friends, rediscovering the pleasures of a childhood treat. A few are self-portraits and most pictures were taken by Warhol , but nowhere to be seen are the famous flashy colors and celebrities. Among the 53 black-and-white photographs on display, viewers can appreciate Warhol’s vision of a tidy hotel room, personal belongings, a box of candies, his meals, and a wall covered with posters juxtaposed with portraits that might have had an influence on his paintings.
Projected on the walls of the Affirmation Arts Gallery are short clips of footage shot by the artist. He films his friends, celebrities and other strangers, which he transforms into movie stars. On loan from the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, the majority of these photographs have never appeared elsewhere. Eight of them have never been seen at all. The archives hold more than 2500 photographs taken between 1974 and the artist’s death in 1987. Despite the revealing footage, Warhol emerges as mysterious as ever. It’s an anonymity the artist certainly would have approved.
Jonas Cuénin
Andy Warhol, Warhol: Confections & Confessions
Through May 5, 2012
Affirmation Arts
523 West 37th Street
New York, NY 10018
