The Factory by Genessy Simo

 

           The Name of my project is The Factory. The Factory is a room where famous/known people hang out. I got my inspiration from Andy Warhol who was an American artist, film director, and producer born on August 6 1928 who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art, as well as Betye Irene Saar who's an African-American artist born on July 20 1926 known for her work in the medium of assemblage. Andy Warhol pioneered a more commercial production approach by creating the Factory. He had no interest in creating pieces just for the wealthy, and instead targeted the masses by placing pop culture figures at the heart of his work, especially products and celebrities. This subject matter appealed to wider society. In theory, just as anyone could own any factory-made item, anybody could own a Warhol.The Factory’s name is even more fitting given the silk-screening process by which Warhol actually produced his work. Rather than painting every piece by hand, he would simply transfer his stenciled designs, allowing him to reproduce a work multiple times and churn out prints at great speed. The Factory had three different New York City locations between 1963 and 1984. One was on the fifth floor at 231 East 47th Street in Midtown Manhattan (1963-1967) One was on the sixth floor of the Decker Building at 33 Union Square West (1968-1973) and the other was on 860 Broadway at the north end of Union Square (1974-1984)

 I chose this medium because of all of the pieces we have learned about throughout the semester this one stood out the most because it wasn't a simple painting. This was a physical place that was viewed as art because art was created within. I would categorize my work as collage/ graphic print because of the numerous materials used. The process of creating my project began with retrieving a shoe box to simulate The Factory itself. Next I created the interior as well as the name of the room. The final touch was incorporating the celebrities from different years. I attempted to include some of the individuals that Andy Warhol painted at one point in his life, for example Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, former President John F. Kennedy, Mao Tse-Tung, Jimmy Carter, and Michael Jackson as well as current time Beyonce and Adele. He is also inside of the room aside Betye Saar whom I was compelled to insert considering her astounding technique of assemblage, and because it is a self portrait project, myself as well. What I believe that this self portrait conveys to the audience is that this was an art piece that can be re-created in a number of ways and still be self explanatory. 

The difference between my first three portraits and this final portrait is that before I was attempting to re-create images of artists exactly how they were, I consumed a lot of time attempting to get the wardrobe, makeup and pose correctly that It took away meaning and purpose from it. The Factory on the other hand is different because I did not copy exactly what Andy Warhol had in his rooms. In the end I have learned a lot from these artists, most importantly that even if you're re-creating something, you can put your own taste into it. 

Related Quotes:

Original paintings are silent and still in a sense that information never is.”

(Berger, 1972) “Images were first made to conjure up the appearance of something that was absent. (Berger, 1972)

Every advertisement is a mystery. (Finkelstein, 2007)

Inside The Factory: The Studio Where Andy Warhol Worked - ArtLife