Pop on the Silver Screen: Perspectives from the Andy Warhol Film Project

Anthology Film Archives, 32 Second Avenue, 10003

Patron, Circle, Fellow, and Sponsor-level members

From 1963 through 1968, Andy Warhol (1928–1987) produced nearly 650 films, including dozens of feature-length movies, in styles ranging from minimalist avant-garde to commercial “sexploitation.” Shortly afterwards, the artist withdrew his films from distribution; for the next twenty years, most critics and scholars could only reconstruct these works from reviews and other verbal accounts. In 1982, curatorial staff from the Whitney and the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) initiated a long-term project, with the artist’s permission, to preserve, research, and ultimately exhibit Warhol’s films, making his achievement available to scholars and the wider public. MoMA acquired the films and began the process of preservation; staff at the Whitney undertook the scholarship that would contextualize the films and form the groundwork for future presentations. Rather than existing as a separate body of work, Warhol’s films intimately connect to the Pop concerns that animate his projects in other media. In this talk, Claire K. Henry will share key insights from her years working with the Andy Warhol Film Project to illuminate how Warhol’s films elaborate and develop these concerns, including Warhol’s interest in commonplace, everyday actions and objects and his fascination with celebrity.

Senior curatorial assistant Claire K. Henry began working directly with the Andy Warhol Film Project at the Whitney in 2007, coordinating the preparations for the forthcoming second volume of the catalogue raisonné of Warhol’s films; she is also a contributing writer to the second volume and lectures frequently about the project, Warhol, and film.

Option 1
February 5, 6:30 pm

Option 2
February 10, 6:30 pm

Open to Patron, Circle, Fellow, and Sponsor-level members. Become a member or upgrade your membership by calling (212) 570-3641. Please note: this event takes place at Anthology Film Archives, 32 Second Avenue, 10003.