pop is art

Andy Warhol died twenty years ago, February 22, 1987. In many ways Warhol refined and expanded the idea of what it means to be an artist. He was a painter, an avant-garde filmmaker, a commercial illustrator, writer and celebrity. He defines Pop Art: a philosophical and practical incorporation of art into popular culture and society, and art offered to us as a product of that society. So Warhol painted dollar bills, brand name products and celebrities. By the end of the sixties he was a celebrity himself.
Warhol adopted The Velvet Underground in 1966, Nico was added on his instigation. Warhol "produced" the first album as well as providing the famous album art: 'The Velvet Underground and Nico' is often referred to as the banana album as it features a Warhol print of a banana on the cover. Early copies of the album invited the owner to Peel slowly and see; peeling back the skin revealed a flesh-colored banana underneath. John Cale later admitted that Warhols actual participation in the album's production consisted of not much more than paying for the studio bill. Money well spent.