THE ARTS
The traveling exhibit called Warhol and the West debuted in August at The Booth Museum and runs through December 31, 2019. Andy Warhol paired with the Old West is fitting, since the soul of the American pop artist was partially rooted in the American West.
38 [www.EnjoyCherokee.com]
“Even [passionate] fans of American artist, director, and producer Andy Warhol aren’t likely aware that the pop icon loved the West,” says Seth Hopkins, executive director of the Booth Western Art Museum, “however, the West was a nearly constant influence throughout his life.” Warhol wore cowboy boots more often than not and loved to travel to New Mexico, Texas, and Colorado. Throughout his life he accumulated an overwhelming collection of Native American art and artifacts. Warhol’s last major project before his death in 1987 was titled Cowboys and Indians. The collection included fourteen iconic Western subjects, including Geronimo and Annie Oakley. In Warhol’s American pop fashion, however, he focused on the Hollywood adaptation of these characters rather than the actual humans. Cowboys and Indians forms the backbone of the traveling exhibit. Walking through the exhibit immerses you in Warhol’s love of Western people, places, and things. You’ll get a sense of what touched his heart and inspired his artwork. People of all ages find the exhibit appealing. Those who grew up watching westerns on television and in movie theaters quickly identify with the scenery, while the younger generations are captivated by the color and movement of the exhibit. All appreciate the unmistakable graphic style unique to Warhol. The Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville played an intricate role in assembling the Warhol and the West exhibit. Together with the Tacoma Art Museum and the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, the team identified and organized more than one hundred objects and works of art from Warhol’s most understudied career aspects. The Andy Warhol museum in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, displays a large collection of original, iconic, American pop art pieces. In addition visitors can examine a collection of his well-worn cowboy boots, often splattered with paint. His work may have been performed in the city, but his heart was in the West. uuu
