Andy and Ana
Ana
Mendieta was born and raised in Cuba but came to America at the age of 12. By
this time, she was old enough to have left Cuba with some memories. Memories
that made its appearance in her work. Ana left Cuba at a young age and the rest
of her adolescent life was spent longing for her identity. Ana was not of an
age to really remember too much about Cuba and its culture. But from a
documentary a relative explained that their grandmother was big on family and
tried to keep all of them together; being that it was a big family. She
explained how the family would go to the beach and Ana would bury herself in
the sand with the help of her cousins. I believe this part of her childhood
played a big role in Ana’s Silueta series. Ana’s Silueta series
featured her actually using her body to make sculptures and make a mark on the
world literally. For everyone to actually see the sculptures she makes from elements
of the world such are water and earth, she would have to literally take a picture
of her work, and this reminded me of what Berger said in his book “Ways of
Seeing.” Berger says, “In this respect, images are more precise and richer than
literature. To say this is not to deny the expressive or imaginative quality of
art, treating it as mere documentary evidence; the more imaginative the work,
the more profoundly it allows us to share the artists' experience of the visible
(Berger 10).” Ana’s pictures were a documentary of evidence that is now so
important today. Without the pictures she took her work would be nowhere to be
found because nature would have taken its toll and washed them all up.
Not
only did Ana’s work feature the search for her identity it featured her
political side which she got from her grandmother who used to always tell her
stories about war. Ana showcased this political side in relation to violence
with her performance titled “Rape Scene”
Andy
Warhol is another amazing artist whose work has made a mark in the art
industry. Like Ana, Andy’s work is inspired by his childhood. At a young age
growing up in poverty, his mother introduced him to art. Andy’s mother used to draw
as well and make flower bouquets. Andy’s mother was very creative and played a
role in Andy’s art career, she even signed him up for free art classes at the museum.
When Andy was younger, his mother used to tell him and his brother to draw
something and whoever’s drawing came out better, they will receive an award
such as a piece of candy and Andy would always win.
One
piece of the many art pieces that stood out from Andy was his Campbells Soup
Can piece where he has many different versions of. I found this piece very
significant because when Andy’s mother was sick in the hospital and he was left
for his older brother to take care of, Andy’s brother used to feed him the Campbells
chicken soup almost every day. This became one of Andy’s favorite food, so him
being able to create a logo for it was very iconic. In “Ways of Seeing, Berger
says “we have learned to see ourselves and read the scene through visual
products on the screen (Berger 11).” In a way, Andy saw himself through his
Campbell's soup artwork and used his work of art to relate to other people as well.
Not only was the logo iconic but so was the type of art he used to create it,
known as pop art. The key idea of Pop art is “creating paintings or sculptures
of mass culture objects and media stars.” This leads us to his very popular piecework
of Marilyn Monroe which really made a name for pop art.
Andy
unlike Ana as his brother would say didn’t know what he would do with himself
if he did not make a name for himself in the art world. In “The Art of
Self-Invention,” Finkelstein says, In every social encounter we are directed to
think about how to make a good impression and how to influence the opinion of
others (Finkelstein 68).” Although Andy was socially awkward his artwork attracted
a lot of attention, especially when he made paintings of people already famous
in the industry such as Muhamad Ali. I feel like Andy’s mindset with fame had
something to do with living in poverty at a young age. Making it in the art
world or being famous just in general was an escape for Andy. Ana was good at
what she did and had a lot of passion for it and fame seemed to be the last
thing on her mind, she actually did not become famous until after she died but
received a lot of recognition for her pieces while she was alive. This seems to
be the trend for a lot of female artists don’t receive attention until
many years later or until after they die. Men can spark fame at a very young
age and for Andy, he had his breakthrough at the age of 20 for a shoe ad in a
magazine.
Finkelstein
says, “all individuals need to be able to influence opinions and shape what
others see (Finkelstein 107). Ana and Andy both were able to influence and
shape what others see in their artwork. Through their artwork, we see how their
childhood played a big role in their art career. Both artists were driven by
different forces. In Ana’s artwork, we see a political stance when she creates “Rape
Scene.” Andy on the other side paved the way along with others with pop art and
showcased his very popular painting of Marilyn Monroe.
Work Cited
“Pop Art Movement Overview.” The Art Story, www.theartstory.org/movement/pop-art/.
Berger, John. Ways of Seeing ; a Book Made by John Berger. British Broadcasting Corporation and Penguin Books, 1972.
Finkelstein, Joanne. ˜Theœ Art of Self Invention Image and Identity in Popular Visual Culture. I.B. Tauris, 2007.
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