What to do, when, and how to visit the Andy Warhol exhibit in Toronto. An incredible opportunity to have a closer look at the work of the most renowned artist of the Pop Art movement. Here goes a friendly reminder: don’t miss out!

The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) was finally allowed to reopen to the public on July 21st, 2021 and since then, the gallery has been hosting a major Andy Warhol exhibition. Warhol is an iconic figure of Pop Art, an artistic movement that originated in the UK around the 1950s and characterized by portraying ironic themes related to capitalism, excessive consumption, mass culture’s aesthetics, – highly criticized by the Frankfurt School – mass publicity, and the so-called “American way of living”. This movement is also well known for its intensified, vibrating colours, and for focusing on common objects of ordinary quotidian life, having served as a huge influence for Graphism and fashion drawings.

Andy Warhol is celebrated for creating art over the image of music icons and movie stars, showing how impersonal, objectified, distant and void they usually are seen as. The artist brought to life in his masterpieces people such as Elvis Presley (Triple Elvis, 1963), Michael Jackson (Michael Jackson, 1984), Brigitte Bardot (Brigitte Bardot, 1974), and his forever favourite, Marilyn Monroe (Marilyn Diptych, 1962). Andy is also famous for demonstrating the impersonality of mass-produced consumer goods, like the Campbell’s soup cans (100 Campbell’s soup cans, 1962) and the Coca-Cola glass bottles (Green Coca-Cola Bottles, 1962).

For his creations, Warhol used a process that combined hand-painted backgrounds with photographic silk screen printed images, as it allowed the artist to reproduce images repeatedly, similarly to what happens with commercial products. In this method, the silkscreens were exposed to an image in order to form a stencil, then the artwork was transferred by pushing ink through the mash onto various surfaces, like paper and fabric. One colour was printed at a time, so several screens needed to be used to produce a multicoloured image. It consists of a repeated mechanical reproduction, instead of using manual labour. With the use of this procedure, Andy Warhol erased commonly important concepts for art before his time, such as uniqueness and originality. The pop artist also used his signature style, the blotted line technique, aided by tracing paper when designing, being then able to create multiple images from the same drawing.

Video Credit: https://ago.ca/exhibitions/andy-warhol#resources

AGO’s visitors are now able to have a unique experience by visiting Warhol’s installations at the gallery in Toronto, organized in partnership with Tate Modern, London, and Museum Ludwig, Cologne. The exhibition walks through the forty years of Andy’s career in retrospect, showcasing the social background that influenced the artist’s work. Moreover, Warhol’s experimental installations at AGO include “Exploding Plastic” (1966) and “Silver Clouds” (1965-66), which are interactive invitations for participation and engagement of the audience. Other important themes of AGO’s exhibit on Warhol are his sexuality, his Catholic faith and his obsession for death. According to AGO’s director and CEO, Stephan Jost, “After eight months, we are absolutely thrilled to reopen our doors”. He also added that “This time has served as a powerful reminder that art and culture are vital to our collective sense of well-being”.

Wondering how not to miss this amazing opportunity of checking out Andy Warhol’s 250 artworks? People of all ages can purchase tickets for $25 or less – free access for 25 years older and under by presenting an ID card – online at https://tickets.ago.ca/events/Andy-Warhol. Every visitor must arrive at the gallery 15 minutes before their time slot and need to have booked tickets in advance. Warhol’s blockbuster at AGO will run every Tuesday to Sunday until October 24, 2021. AGO is open from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays; and from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays. The Art Gallery of Ontario is located at 317 Dundas Street West, in Toronto, ON M5T 1G4 and is accessible with public transportation.

Published by HOLR Magazine.