Andy Warhol—
From A to B and
Back Again
Nov 12, 2018–Mar 31, 2019
Performance and Experimentation
10
On June 3, 1968, Warhol was shot multiple times by the mentally ill, radical feminist author Valerie Solanas, who had appeared in two of Warhol’s films. Although he required numerous surgeries and a lengthy convalescence, Warhol soon returned to a high level of productivity, reinvesting himself in his work.
At this moment, Warhol pursued a number of more conceptual projects, curating exhibitions and producing his only play, Pork. He also began experimenting with video.
Andy Warhol vacuuming the carpet for an installation piece, c. 1972
This photograph documents Warhol’s contribution to the 1972 group exhibition Art in Process V at the Finch College Museum of Art on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The museum (now defunct) asked all participating artists to produce new work onsite, which would be shown along with photographic documentation of its creation. Warhol staged a performance in which he unboxed and assembled a brand-new Eureka canister vacuum, cleaned the gallery’s rug, and then removed and signed the vacuum’s bag, which was included in the exhibition.