Andy Warhol’s Social Network: An Analysis
Prior to my visit to Andy Warhol’s Social Network exhibition, I knew very little about Andy Warhol and the exhibition itself. I chose to analyze this particular exhibition because, despite being a Pittsburgh native, I have never been to The Andy Warhol Museum. Although I lacked knowledge of the exhibition, I knew about the existence of Interview Magazine before visiting. I did not, however, know that the magazine had any relation to Andy Warhol. After learning that Warhol founded Interview Magazine with journalist John Wilcock, I was intrigued by the idea of an artist, known for his work with screen printing, co-founding a pop culture magazine.
I had a few preconceived notions before attending the exhibition. I expected the museum to feel very modern and industrial because of the work and style of art for which Andy Warhol is famous. I went on a Thursday morning, mid-October, so I did not expect to see many people there. My biggest hopes were that all articles of Interview Magazine were on display and labels describing the process behind and the formation of the magazine were available. In terms of diversity in gender, race, and in color, I did not expect very much. With little to no evidence, I predicted that the museum would predominantly be filled with white males in their twenties and thirties. I made many of these assumptions because I do not find Andy Warhol to be a particularly relatable artist or person. He was, in fact, a white male with a college education. He lived in New York for a portion of his life, and there he made art, went to parties, and spent time with his friends and regular muses, Liza Minnelli, Mick and Bianca Jagger, and Jane Fonda. Despite Warhol being born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I have always thought of him as a mysterious, distant individual. Andy Warhol has been a consistent inspiration to me, and he was one of the few names I knew in the art world for some time. Although I do not find him to be relatable, he has continued to be influential with his revolutionary art style.
The Andy Warhol Museum is quite unassuming from the outside. It is a gray stone building with minimal advertisement of the museum and its exhibitions. The ground level of the floor has display windows filled with merchandise and the wallpaper that fills the walls of the museum inside. The lobby of the museum felt like that of a high-end hotel or lounge space. There was a cafe with seating and many comfortable couches, and even a coat-check room to leave my jacket in while walking around the museum. I made my way up to the second floor of the building via elevator, and when the elevator doors opened, I was welcomed to the Social Network exhibition by a wall text that read, “Andy Warhol’s Social Network: Interview, Television, & Portraits”. The floor was filled with display cases full of Interview Magazine articles, and there were pictures hung up that were taken on Warhol’s 35 mm camera. Many of the walls and all of the display cases and labels were a dull, light pink color. Despite the color pink typically being associated with femininity, the exhibition did not feel particularly feminine. The room felt very industrial because of its exposed lighting, high ceilings, and open concrete structures, but the floor felt softer when juxtaposed with the light pink color. The curator of this exhibition, Jessica Beck, succeeded in producing a space that felt diverse in gender, age, color, and race.
Andy Warhol’s Social Network exhibition was a peaceful and informative experience. I enjoyed the aesthetic of the space and the pools of information I digested. I found the common theme between the works in the exhibition to revolve around Warhol’s social life. I was impressed by the neutral feeling of the museum in terms of feeling comfortable. As a nineteen-year-old college girl, I tend to feel out of place in spaces in which I am not familiar, however, at the Andy Warhol Museum, I felt accepted and relaxed throughout the duration of my visit. I was not overwhelmed by the amount of information being thrown at me, and I did not feel rushed to move through the exhibit. I was impressed by the pacing and spacing of the exhibition. The architectural and interior design elements of the exhibition strengthen the idea of inclusivity and peace. The labels and wall text provide the viewer with ample information pertaining to the artist and his extravagant life. Curator, Jessica Beck, did a spectacular job explaining such a broad portion of Warhol’s life while encouraging the viewer to continue to read, learn, and take in the artwork.