The Marquette Journal

Dan Keegan, curator of the Milwaukee Art Museum, wants to ask you: “When you think of Andy Warhol, what’s the first thing that comes to mind?”

Did you say “Campbell’s Chicken Soup”? Most people think the same thing.

But Joe Kethner, director of the Andy Warhol: The Last Decade exhibit at MAM, wants to change that. And if he gets his way, you’ll be thinking of “The Last Supper” instead of soup cans.

Andy Warhol certainly accomplished a lot during his 40-year career. He grew from a small-time artist into a central figure in Pop Art, expanding into fashion, music, filmmaking, magazine publication and television. But it’s the last decade of these 40 years that Kethner wants to explore, with over 30 pieces from this decade acquired over the years by the museum. And he said he thinks it adds a whole new realm to the general understanding of Warhol.

“This is the first time Warhol’s last decade is on exhibit. We’re working in multiple directions and different ideas,” Kethner said. “We really worked to produce a new look on Andy Warhol.”

That look is an older Warhol, Kethner said, a more conscious Warhol.

“Warhol had just turned 50, and he was very aware of his own mortality,” Kethner said, concerning a particularly well-known silkscreen of the artist being choked from behind. “Warhol could deal with difficult issues, such as death.”

Of course, don’t think that it all didn’t contain Warhol’s signature charm. Mary Chapin, associate curator, is quick to remind us that Warhol is still Warhol.

“Warhol always wants you to read into it. Even when he’s talking about his own mortality, it’s still repeated. It still is mass-produced,” Chapin said.

Warhol’s own life plays into another big focus of the exhibit: his portrayal of the famous piece, The Last Supper.
Despite the off-yellow and the mass-market advertisements plastered across the piece, Warhol was a devout orthodox Catholic. Although few people knew about it when he was alive, his family was Catholic, he went to church on Sundays, and he was generally a very strong believer in the Catholic faith.

Kethner said that it’s obvious to see his devotion, even with the commercial logos.

“These are not parodies. These are sincere adaptations of Christ as a devout Orthodox,” Kethner said. Chapin said The last supper is some of the largest works Warhol ever produced, and he worked for more than a year on the series.

Of course, if you need more Warhol, you won’t be let down. Keegan said there will be various special complimentary pieces to go along with the exhibit, including a lecture by an expert of the original Last Supper piece, Martin Kemp, and a film program in conjunction with UWM on Oct. 22 and 23.

“The Last Decade” is on exhibit at MAM until January, where it will begin to travel to other museums around the country. As always, museum admittance is $12 generally and $10 with a student ID.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 29th, 2009 at 6:48 pm and is filed under City, Issues, October 2009. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.