Andy Warhol, Poetry, and Gossip in the 1960s [Paperback]

Reva Wolf (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0226904938 | ISBN-13: 978-0226904931 | Publication Date: November 24, 1997 | Edition: 1

Andy Warhol is usually remembered as the artist who said that he wanted to be a machine, and that no one need ever look further than the surface when evaluating him or his art. Arguing against this carefully crafted pop image, Reva Wolf shows that Warhol was in fact deeply emotionally engaged with the people around him and that this was reflected in his art.

Wolf investigates the underground culture of poets, artists, and filmmakers who interacted with Warhol regularly. She claims that Warhol understood the literary imagination of his generation and that recognizing Warhol's literary activities is essential to understanding his art. Drawing on a wealth of unpublished material, including interviews, personal and public archives, tape recordings, documentary photographs, and works of art, Wolf offers dramatic evidence that Warhol's interactions with writers functioned like an extended conversation and details how this process impacted his work. This highly original and fascinating study gives us fresh insight into Warhol's art as practice and reformulates the myth that surrounds this popular American artist.

Product Details

• Paperback: 226 pages
• Publisher: University Of Chicago Press; 1 edition (November 24, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0226904938
• ISBN-13: 978-0226904931
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,105,217 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Warhol and writers, October 29, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Andy Warhol, Poetry, and Gossip in the 1960s (Paperback)

Warhol is often portrayed in films and literature as a superficial, aloof, overtly homosexual artist. What is often overlooked is that Warhol was an intellectual. Reva Wolf does a wonderful job pointing this key factor out to the reader. Warhol was associated with some of the world's greatest writers. People like Kerouac and Dylan came to Warhol for a reason; Warhol offered them a world that was worth writing about. Wolf delves into Warhol and his relations with various writers. The factory scene is covered in that great detail is given to Gerard Malanga (who was often viewed as Warhol's sole intellectual). Gerard was an aspiring poet (much like many at The Factory) and Warhol was often spotted at various "happenings" listening to the current spill of contemporary poetry in the sixties. There are relatively few flaws in comparison to the overall book. Wolf provides the reader with several rare photographs. The clarity of some of them is slightly weak. Yet, the layout of the book is modern and a few of the photos catch Warhol fairly intimately. The entire book provides the reader with an intellectual perspective to viewing the life of Andy Warhol. Wolf proves that Warhol was more than his facade by addressing the gossip and writings that surrounded Warhol. Wolf does not attempt to explain the enigma which is Warhol, but merely gives a new angle in which to view. Anyone interested in Warhol and the intelligencia of the sixties must read this book. Wolf's book is a fabulous companion to The Andy Warhol Diaries and Popism.