Andy Warhol (1928-1987) is one of the most iconic figures in 20th-century art, an enigmatic man who not only altered the definition of art but also in his wake left a vast and staggeringly complex record of his daily activities. This work is the definitive record of the artist's paintings, sculptures, and drawings: some 15,000 works produced by Warhol between 1948 and 1987. Also included is an array of rarely published source material such as newspaper scraps and movie star publicity stills that inspired Warhol's life and career. "The Andy Warhol Catalogue Raisonne" was initiated in 1977 by Thomas Ammann. The editors Georg Frei and Neil Printz began primary research in 1993 and have been advised throughout the project by the curators and art historians Kynaston McShine and Robert Rosenblum. Experts from the Andy Warhol Foundation examined the vast majority of Warhol's works and began a thorough review of his archive, which at his death consisted of 1500 cardboard boxes, flat files, and trunks filled with source material, memorabilia, correspondence and junk mail. The editors examined works in museums in their conservation facilities and discussed them with conservators, submitted works for review by the Andy Warhol Art Authentication Board, and interviewed Warhol's assistants and colleagues to assemble a customized database of works unparalleled in Warhol scholarship. All of their findings are documented in this project. Each annotated catalogue entry includes the works' title, date, medium, dimensions, and present owner, followed by a record of inscriptions, provenance, exhibitions, and literature. Related works are linked by general introductory texts that address historical circumstances, shared themes, and studio practices. Supplementary figures to the texts illustrate source materials Warhol appropriated for his works - newspaper articles and advertisements, soup cans, publicity stills - as well as related drawings, works by other artists, and studio and exhibition views. "Volume 1" includes classic and much-prized Warhols such as the "Campbell Soup paintings", images of icons Marilyn, Liz, and Elvis and early self-portraits.
Andy Warhol, a painter and graphic artist, also produced a significant body of film work, including his famous Chelsea Girls. He was equally well known in the late sixties and early seventies as resident host at his studio, The Factory, where one could listen to Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground and rub elbows with Edie Sedgwick. Warhold died in New York in 1987.
