Leo Martínez
Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe is one of the most celebrated artworks of the 20th century. Warhol's obsession with celebrity, beauty, and death is reflected in his numerous portraits of the actress. Warhol's Marilyn Monroe series includes the famous Marilyn Diptych, which consists of 50 images of the actress, all sourced from the 1953 film Niagara. The series also includes the Reversal series, which features inverted reproductions of his earlier works, and the 1967 portfolio, which includes 10 screen prints.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of Marilyn Monroe paintings by Andy Warhol | 277 |
| Number of prints by Andy Warhol | 26,167 |
| Year of creation | 1962, 1967 |
| Number of images in the Marilyn Diptych | 50 |
| Number of screen print portfolios | 3 |
| Number of prints in each portfolio | 10 |
| Size of each print | 36 x 36 inches |
| Colour of prints | Silver, black, yellow, red |
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What You'll Learn
Marilyn Diptych (1962)
The work is composed of two silver canvases, each measuring 2054 x 1448 mm. The repetition of the image of Monroe's face has been said to remake her face into an "eerie, inanimate mask". The use of the silkscreen technique further "flattens" the star's face, removing the shading that would usually create a sense of three-dimensional volume. This process of screening broad planes of unmodulated colour suspends the actress in an abstract void.
The format of the Marilyn Diptych mirrors the form of a Christian work of art depicting the Virgin Mary on one side and the crucified Jesus on the other. This comparison with religious art references the idolisation of Marilyn Monroe. The work has been interpreted as a carefully crafted critique of both modern art and contemporary life.
Marilyn Diptych is one of Warhol's most noted works of the movie star. It was completed just weeks after Marilyn Monroe's death in August 1962. The work has received praise from several critics, including American academic and cultural critic Camille Paglia, who wrote in 2012's Glittering Images about how it shows the "multiplicity of meanings" in Monroe's life and legacy.
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Marilyn screen print portfolios (1967)
Andy Warhol created three Marilyn Monroe screen print portfolios in 1967, five years after the actress's untimely death in 1962. The portfolio consists of 10 screen prints, each sized 36 x 36 inches, and was one of the first prints Warhol printed and distributed through Factory Additions, New York. The name of this company is an allusion to Warhol's studio, "The Factory".
The 1967 Marilyn Monroe portfolio is seen as an extension of Warhol's initial silkscreen painting, the Marilyn Diptych (1962). The Marilyn Diptych is a silkscreen painting that contains fifty images of the actress, all taken from the 1953 film Niagara. The work is a commentary on the relationship between Monroe's life and death. The format of the Marilyn Diptych mirrors the form of a Christian work of art depicting the Virgin Mary on one side and the crucified Jesus on the other. The comparison with the religious work references the idolization of Marilyn Monroe.
Warhol's 1967 Marilyn Monroe portfolio immortalises the actress and advertises her fame through her public self. The portfolio is viewed as one entity, but each individual print may either be called "Untitled from Marilyn Monroe" or named after the colours in the work, for example, "Orange Marilyn", "Lemon Marilyn", and "White Marilyn". The original silk-screened prints made by hand are worth millions, but computer-printed "Marilyns" are also sold for a much lower price.
Warhol had a streamlined process for producing silk screen prints. First, he laid a photograph onto the mesh of a silk screen. Then, he passed an ink-covered squeegee over the mesh. The ink would pass through the mesh and impress a print of the image onto the canvas underneath. The choice of ink depended on the intended composition of the final product. Warhol was able to apply multiple colours to create a layering effect, thus achieving a different colour composition each time.
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Gold Marilyn Monroe (1962)
Andy Warhol created numerous paintings of Marilyn Monroe, including the famous Marilyn Diptych (1962) and Gold Marilyn Monroe (1962). This response will focus on Gold Marilyn Monroe (1962).
Gold Marilyn Monroe is a screen print painting by Andy Warhol, depicting the actress's face on a large, gold-painted canvas. The image of Monroe is a direct copy of a close-up photograph from her 1953 film Niagara. The painting measures 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) in height and 4 ft 9 in (1.45 m) in width. Warhol used silkscreen ink on synthetic polymer paint to create the work.
Gold Marilyn Monroe was included in Warhol's first show in New York at the Stable Gallery in November 1962, where it was purchased by the architect Philip Johnson. Johnson later donated the painting to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City, where it remains today.
The year 1962 was a significant one for Warhol, as it marked the beginning of his iconic pop art silkscreen prints. He began using the silkscreen technique to create repetitive imagery, evoking the ubiquitous celebrity status of his subjects, such as Marilyn Monroe. The choice of ink and canvas depended on the intended composition of the final product, and Warhol often used a variety of materials to achieve different effects.
Gold Marilyn Monroe is a striking example of Warhol's fascination with celebrity culture and his unique style of art that continues to influence and inspire contemporary aesthetic expressions.
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Marilyn Monroe (Marilyn) (1967)
Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe (Marilyn) (1967) is a screen print portfolio consisting of ten images of the actress. It was one of the first print portfolios Warhol printed and distributed through Factory Additions, New York, a company named after his studio, "The Factory".
The images in the portfolio are all based on the same 1953 publicity photograph of Monroe from the film Niagara, which Warhol transformed with intentionally off-register printing and garish combinations of psychedelic colours. Each image is sized 36 x 36 inches, a close crop of Monroe's face. The vibrant colours reflect her personality, with her lips coloured a deep red and her platinum blonde hair emphasised with shades of yellow. One print, however, is coloured in silver and black, reminiscent of watching the actress on a black-and-white cinema screen.
Warhol's use of screen printing, or silkscreening, allowed him to create multiple colour compositions of the same image. He described the process as follows:
> You pick a photograph, blow it up, transfer it in glue onto silk, and then roll ink across it so the ink goes through the silk but not through the glue.
Warhol's Marilyn Monroe (Marilyn) (1967) is considered an extension of his earlier silkscreen painting, the Marilyn Diptych (1962). The diptych consists of fifty images of Monroe, with twenty-five in colour and twenty-five in black and white, and is said to evoke the relationship between the actress's life and death.
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Marilyn (Reversal) series (1979)
Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe is one of the most famous subjects in the history of art. Warhol's obsession with the actress and her untimely death in 1962 inspired him to create a plethora of artworks featuring her image. One of his most notable works is the Marilyn Diptych (1962), a silkscreen painting consisting of 50 images of Monroe, all sourced from a single publicity photograph from the film Niagara (1953). The left side of the diptych features 25 coloured images, while the right side is in black and white.
In 1979, Warhol returned to his enduring fascination with Monroe, creating the Marilyn (Reversal) series. This series, conceived on the suggestion of Warhol's dealer Bruno Bischofberger, was a radical and innovative revisiting of some of the most iconic images from his career. The Reversal series included the 1979/1986 painting Nine Marilyns, an acrylic and silkscreen ink on linen, as well as the 1979 silkscreen ink on canvas 1 Colored Marilyn.
1 Colored Marilyn is a striking example of Warhol's innovative approach to image-making. In this work, Warhol takes his iconic image of Monroe and transforms it into something akin to a photographic negative. The negative space and inverted tonalities of light and shadow create a pulsating profile, with gestural swirls of turquoise, hot pink, and cadmium red emerging from the inky black background. The resulting effect is both familiar and hauntingly subversive, reflecting Warhol's interest in abstraction at the time.
The Marilyn (Reversal) series marks a significant departure from Warhol's earlier depictions of Monroe. By revisiting and re-imagining his own work, Warhol created intriguing parallels between the re-imaging of his art and the transformation of Monroe's image in visual culture. The series also showcases Warhol's experimentation with colour and abstraction, further solidifying his legacy as a master of Pop Art.
Warhol's Marilyn (Reversal) series was exhibited in Europe at the Galerie Bischofberger in Zurich, the Galerie Daniel Templon in Paris, and the Museum Moderne Kunst in Vienna, starting in 1980. The series continues to be celebrated and influential, with 1 Colored Marilyn selling at the 20th-Century & Contemporary Art Evening Sale in New York in 2017.
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Frequently asked questions
Andy Warhol made numerous paintings of Marilyn Monroe, including the famous Marilyn Diptych (1962), which consists of 50 images of the actress. He also created three Marilyn Monroe screen print portfolios in 1967, each containing 10 screen prints.
The Marilyn Diptych is a silkscreen painting created by Warhol shortly after Monroe's death in 1962. It consists of 50 images of the actress, all taken from the 1953 film Niagara. The left side of the canvas features 25 coloured images, while the right side is black and white. The painting is currently held in the collection of the Tate.
You can see Warhol's paintings of Monroe at various museums around the world. The Tate Modern in London displays the Marilyn Diptych, while the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York holds the Gold Marilyn Monroe (1962). The Cleveland Museum of Art has Marilyn x 100, and the Leeum Samsung Museum in Seoul houses Forty-Five Gold Marilyns (1979).
Warhol was fascinated by celebrity, beauty and death, and Monroe, as a famous actress, embodied these themes. He began depicting Monroe shortly after her death in 1962, and his repetitive imagery of her ubiquitous celebrity status and iconic glamour.
In addition to Marilyn Monroe, Andy Warhol painted other famous figures such as Elizabeth Taylor, Chairman Mao, Grace Kelly, Muhammad Ali, and Mick Jagger. He also created screen prints of Mickey Mouse, Superman, and Campbell's Soup Cans.
