Go pop in Alula

GO POP IN ALULA

by Micaela Zucconi

A move to the deserts of Saudi Arabia for Andy Warhol, with an exhibition featuring the legendary portraits of celebrities and Hollywood divas that helped the “Pope of Pop” become a counter-culture icon

© 2023 The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Licensed by DACS, London

Left, Andy

Founding Collection, Contribution The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. 1998.1.2900. To side, the entrance to the exhibition on the American artist in the Maraya Concert Hall, AlUla. Below, the exhbition with another selfportrait of the artist at 48 years of age (1976). Bottom, right, Screen Tests, Edie Sedgwick – Installation Photo. All rights reserved. Film still courtesy The Andy Warhol Museum)

Andy Warhol (1928-1987) would take great pleasure in the reflections from the mirrored surfaces of the Maraya, a huge structure that rises like a mirage from the desert of AlUla in north-western Saudi Arabia. This unique auditorium by the Italian studio of Giò Forma, a setting for international festivals and events, is now hosting a retrospective dedicated to the legendary pop art icon (until 16th May). FAME: Andy Warhol in AlUla showcases the American artist for the first time in Saudi Arabia with works from the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, the native city of an artist

Warhol, SelfPortrait (Fright Wig), 1986 (The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh;

(© ArtsAlUla / © 2023 The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc.)

© Arts AlUla / © The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh, PA, a museum of Carnegie Institute

who changed the way we see and perceive contemporary society. On show is an extensive collection of paintings, films and rare archive material with a focus on Hollywood celebrities, a central theme in Warhol’s work and one he first become fascinated by when a young man in Pittsburgh. “I thought this was the best way to introduce the artist in a country with a totally different culture, where most visitors will not be familiar with his work”, says Patrick Moore, curator of the exhibition and director of the Pittsburgh museum. The catalogue of works on show includes portraits of Elizabeth Taylor, Jackie Kennedy (depicted before JFK’s assassination), the legendary boxer Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) and singer-songwriter Dolly Parton, legends who become stars of the Studio 54 scene and conversations published in “Interview” magazine, founded by Warhol in New York in 1949. Less well-known though, are thirteen of the so-called “Screen Tests”, three-minute portraits filmed in black and white of personalities, famous or otherwise, of the New York avantgarde. Warhol shot hundreds of these between 1964 and 1966 in the famous “Factory”. “Once he’d started filming, Warhol would move away and leave his subjects to stand alone in front of the camera, as if looking in a mirror”, says Patrick Moore. The “Silver Clouds” of 1966, floating helium-filled clouds made of metallic plastic, close the

display. The “Fame” retrospective is part of the Arts AlUla Festival on the theme of “Living in Colour”, embracing contemporary art, artist residencies, design and artisanal skills. In 2024 it’s the turn of land art, and the first site specific works by five artists will be installed in the valley of Wadi Alfann (Valley of the Arts). The initiative is supported by the Royal Commission for AlUla in the context of the “Kingdom of Saudia Arabia Vision 2030”, an economic, social and cultural development plan for the country. “We’re focussing on art and creativity to promote the region and enable people to enjoy cultural and emotional experiences”, says Nora Aldabal, the Royal Commission’s Executive Director of Arts and Creative Industries. The exhibition held at Maraya is not the only event dedicated to Warhol this year. The MAGA museum in Gallarate (in Italy), for example, is presenting an extensive anthology of 200 works embracing the entire range of Andy Warhol’s creative output. The financial success his work enjoys is reflected by the prices achieved at auction. A silk screen portrait of Queen Elizabeth II made in 1985 went under the hammer for 850,000 dollars at the Heffel auction house in November 2022 and last February three of Warhol’s works were sold at Phillips auction house for 44,100, 37,800 and 36,540 dollars (Jackie II of 1965, Cow of 1976 and Kyoto of 1956 respectively).

This page, clockwise, Judy Garland, ca. 1979 (The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh; Founding Collection, Contribution The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. 1998.1.554). Muhammad Ali, 1978 (The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh; Founding Collection, Contribution DIA Center for the Arts, 1997.1.18.4). Dolly Parton, 1985 (The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh; Founding Collection, Contribution The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. 1998.1.625). Princess Caroline of Monaco, 1983 (The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh; Founding Collection, Contribution The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. 1998.1.633.

Left-hand page, the Maraya Concert Hall, and auditorium panelled entirely with mirrors reflecting the surrounding landscape, from an idea by Florian Boje of the

Giò Forma studio, Milan

© 2023

The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Licensed by DACS, London © 2023 The And Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Licensed by DACS, London / Muhammad Ali™; Rights of Publicity and Persona Rights: Muhammad Ali Enterprises LLC. ali.com

© 2023

The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Licensed by DACS, London).

© 2023 The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. /Licensed by DACS, London