As a mnemonic of popular culture, pop art has played a pivotal role in bringing focus on to diverse aspects of consumerism. Encompassing various objects, this art form has focused on important characters and personalities too. Celebrities have thus been an important part of the culture and the ever evolving popart movement.
The beginning
Andy Warhol was an iconic pop artist who gave shape, form and direction to the pop art movement. He loved fame and was an important part of social gatherings. He enjoyed drawing portraits of celebrities, work that brought him recognition, good sizable income and also social standing. His famous works include portraits of Marylin Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Jaqueline Kennedy and other celebrities. Many other artists too drew similar portraits. Soviet and Chinese propaganda portraits also featured celebrities like Chairman Mao while the silhouette style featured Eminem. Shepherd Fairey's work on the Obama campaign, though unofficial, is another important indicator.
Current trends
Even in the current world, celebrity pop portraits continue to be popular, and for varied reasons. For one, people are always on the look-out for innovative portrait styles of the favourite celeb. Pop is one medium that allows for novel styles of such portraits. Secondly, lives of celebrities are public and often praised or critiqued for a range of reasons. This gives pop art artists plenty of material to create interesting portraits. Either from drawing, colouring or to putting together a collage of different facets of a celebrity's life, varied styles have been made popular today.
Celebrity collectibles
Most celebrities enjoy these versions of themselves as it brings them to the limelight. Many of them also get such portrait versions commissioned, so as to leave behind a legacy not just of their name, but of the art style they chose. It also shows interesting facets of their personalities that would have otherwise been difficult to chronicle in a normal portrait. With new printing technologies it is also possible for both pop art artists and celebrities to promote works on diverse mediums of key chains, canvas prints, paper prints, wood blocks and even ceramic.
Online Markets
The advent of online markets and e-commerce has also made these portraits much more accessible to customers. People can easily shop online from the comfort of their personal computers to access a wide range of celebrity portraits. Varied sites and tools allow people to easily compare and then purchase styles that best suit their requirements and often décor.
Celebrities and pop art often go hand in hand with one influencing the other in varied ways. Through this form, their lives and stories are often chronicled in this interesting manner. Pop art on the other hand grows in its expressive styles through the usage of popular faces. Whether it be classic Warhol style portraits, Lichtenstein's comic style images, Eminem in the iPod campaign or monochromatic styles, pop art continues to flourish through media icons. As pop art does not belong to one static style, and constantly changes with changing times, celebrity images are captured in a world of current times.
Ronan Le Breton is a Bali based professional pop art artist, who also manages operations of a pop art studio. Various artists work together to create pop art impressions. Works are on display at http://www.personal-art.me.uk/
No comments:
Post a Comment