Golden Marilyn Monroe by Andy Warhol, 1962.
211 x 144 cm. Silkscreen ink on synthetic polymer paint on canvas, from Warhol's Marilyns.
SUBJECT: Personal Function--Religious/Spiritual
and Psychological
SUBJECT MATTER: A golden painted canvas with
a painting of Marilyn Monroe in the center--created soon after her death (believed to be suicide).
FORM: Silkscreen ink on synthetic polymer
paint on canvas, 211 cm x 144 cm. Gold background that fills most of the painting, face in the middle with few details.
CONTENT: Very detailed hair, but face has just
the basics. Skin is shown as basically flawless (a trait of Warhol's celebrity paintings). You can see a bit of
Marilyn's shirt collar which is shown as the same color as her eye shadow. The gold background, filling most of the
painting, along with the shadows by her face, really help to make the face pop out at you.
Andy Warhol is said to have used a gold background
to portray her as a sort of "God" in the celebrity world. I saw something similar to that when I looked at it, but not
exactly that same way. I see this painting as mostly Psychological because while I see the gold representing her being
some sort of "God", I also see it as a glamour symbol.
Most people back then (and now) saw Marilyn Monroe
as a pure glamour symbol. But her committing suicide, in my opinion, showed that she wasn't so happy with that lifestyle
that she had. I look at the smile on her face in the painting, and I just see sadness. Andy seemed to be painting
an illusion of Marilyn, showing her as happy when she really didn't seem to be.
