Hi everyone!
In my room I have this little picture on my wall of a quote by Andy Warhol that I’ve always loved. It says “People should fall in love with their eyes closed.” I think this quote is great because it connects really well to much of Warhol’s art and the themes he incorporated in his pieces.
Andy Warhol, in a large portion of his art, comments on consumerism, pop culture, mass media, and society as a whole. From images of Campbell’s Soup cans to Hollywood icons such as Elvis or Marilyn Monroe, and all the way to images of car crashes from his Death and Disaster series, Warhol was constantly commenting on and pointing out the influences of imagery on society. He showed how much society was engulfed in consumerism and Hollywood icons, all of which were popular and well known at the time. He also depicts the negative side of society and how desensitized they’d become with violent imagery in newspapers, such as car crashes. This idea of how imagery affects society is just as important and relevant today. If anything, imagery today is even more present in our lives.
With commercials, the news, newspapers, and most importantly social media, imagery is constantly being passed around and undoubtedly affects or influences us on a daily basis. Think about all the different advertisements you see or how social media influencers promote different things. Consumerism constantly surrounds us somehow. On a different note, think about all the imagery we see in the news and on social media about different issues, crimes, tragedies, etc. Just as Warhol emphasized in his Death and Disaster series, eventually we become desensitized to it all.
In the end, Andy Warhol’s art is still very important and holds a relevant message for today’s world. And to actually feel something, whether it has to do with love or not, I think we could all use a moment to close our eyes from the sometimes overwhelming imagery and take a step back to reconnect with our world and those around us.
“People should fall in love with their eyes closed”
Andy Warhol
