Andy Warhol—From A to B and Back Again

2018

“Andy's work really goes to the heart of the matter of what it means to be a human being and what our potential is . . . It's the real deal.”—Jeff Koons

Hear from a range of contemporary artists, curators, and scholars speaking about iconic works on view. Contributors include Jeff Koons, Hank Willis Thomas, Deborah Kass, Peter Halley, Sasha Wortzel, and Richard Meyer.

Transcription: Andy Warhol's TV, Season 2, Episode 5, 1983

Running time: 23:11 mins

[80s pop synth music]

Voice one: It's Andy Warhol's TV, with actress and model Brook Shields. New artists, Keith Haring, and Kenny Scharf, and a trip to Palm Beach for the Piaget one-hundred-thousand-dollar World Cup polo game, and the New Faces.

Cindy Gibb: Well, since I've been on Search for Tomorrow two years ago, I started out at seventeen very naïve and innocent, and just being a school girl and dancer. Then I fell in love and the guy who I fell in love with, I ended up getting into a car accident with. Then he injured my knee in the car accident, and I was about to have a big dance audition so, he felt guilty, so he put all my money into an investment with him, and he lost all my money so he felt bad that he lost all my money so he went in the ring, in the boxing ring to fight. You see he had this aneurysm from the last fight he had and he went blind from it. 

Then he went blind and he pushed me away, and made me go away. My present husband's brother – sister – decided that she liked him and so she went and slept with him and decided that she was going to marry this guy. She told him she was pregnant and got – and so I lost my real love to her, because she pretended to be pregnant, so they got married. I got back together again with her brother who really was after my ass the whole time, and the thing was that while I was seeing him, I then got into the plane crash in the Galapagos Islands. Then when I got back from the Galapagos, I got married and then my husband started fooling around with my half-sister best friend and I just walked in on them and kicked them out of the house. That's what I’m doing at nineteen.

Voice one: Stay tuned for new artists, Keith Haring and Kenny Scharf.

[80s pop music]

[singing] 

Voice two: [singing] Browns, browns, browns, Bill. Browns, Browns, Browns, Bill.

[disc scratching]

Tony Shafrazi: When they first came to New York, they both went to School of Visual Arts, and yet they found the most interesting things that were taking was in New York, in the streets. That would be the graffiti on the trains, posters, etcetera, plus the music that was taking place in the clubs. They were both participating in this exciting climate. The culture they found to be most meaningful was what was taking place in the street.

Voice two: [singing] You’re listening to the world famous Supreme Team Show. WBI 105 FM.

Keith Haring: I moved into a YMCA at first. Burning Branch YMCA on Twenty-Third Street. It was pretty weird, right in the beginning. Then after I moved, in about three days, I met someone on a pier in the West Village and moved in, and became their roommate. I lived in the West Village for about three months until that got completely unbearable, and I couldn't really handle the “clone scene.” For two years, I was mainly watching other things. I was watching other things and not really doing anything. I mean now, I'm probably more interested or influenced by funk and popular music that's on the radio. I listen to disco stations and things, hang out at Paradise Garage.

Tony Shafrazi: I think in a short amount of time, having arrived in New York and becoming part of the New York art scene, they've effectively changed the language of the art scene in New York in a matter of two or three years, in the sense that they've created a tremendous variety of imagery and characters that have appealed to a vast audience. Be it children, students of art, serious artists, and museum directors and collectors.

Keith Haring: It just presented more and more possibilities, and opened up more and more opportunity to do it bigger.

Kenny Scharf: And better.

Keith Haring: For more people and better, and not have to worry about doing a stupid job or working at the Mudd Club in between or something like that.

Kenny Scharf: Right.

Keith Haring: You don't have to answer to anybody anymore. Also, I sort of took it all in stride. Nothing ever really changed a lot. It seems like, to a lot of people, like it happened fast, but for me, it seems like everything just followed one thing after another and fell in place. It didn't even really sink in that, yeah, here I am four years later doing drawings at the Whitney. You have all these new things heaped on top of you that you're supposed to deal with and be responsible for and supposed to become this role model for all these other people. It's sort of a big responsibility to be the one person that is singled out because all these other people, I mean hundreds of other people that supposedly would like to be in your shoes, are obviously not going to be given the chance, because at any one time, there is only a handful of people that get to do it. 

Tony Shafrazi: Kenny Scharf, for example, seriously believes that he was promised, that he could travel to the moon, and so he's still trying to fulfill that dream. Anyways, the reality that is given to us is meaningless compared to the fantasy that he believed in, so his dedication is towards fulfilling that fantasy and making it into a reality.

[cartoon theme song from television]

Kenny Scharf: Describing my art in three sentences, I would say: it's a lot of fun, you can come along for the ride, and let's go to space. My inspiration is from me and my life and the world, I guess. Television is a big part of it, because I sat in front of it really close for a long time when I was a little kid. We got this new color TV. It was a big RCA when it first came out. They don't have them like this anymore, but the first ones had, if you looked really close, they were all colored dots and a black background, so if you looked pretty close, it was pretty amazing.     

I went to Scotland with Samantha McEwen, and I had with me the National Enquirer that I had bought in the airport. When we got there, I did one every day with the scenes of what I saw, and there are all these different stars from the National Enquirer and they're in Scotland. Like this one is Tippi Hedren's daughter, this one is Faye Dunaway as Joan Crawford. 

Keith Haring: You have lots of religious paintings.

Kenny Scharf: Yes I do, I found that in the trash, that one there.

Keith Haring: You found it in the trash?

Kenny Scharf: I found most of them, the religious things, in the trash. I don't like to make any distinction between my art and my life or my surroundings. I try to just be myself and if this is, this kind of thing – which, I don't know what you would call it – decorations, or just my apartment, I don't know. Some people don't think it's art or whatever. I’m just doing what I do naturally. I'm not thinking, "Is this art or not?"

[80s pop music]

Voice one: Stay tuned for Brooke Shields

Jim Catch: I came to New York about two weeks ago with the ITMSA Modeling Convention. It was about forty other models from Nebraska and we came and competed against, I'd say about six-hundred different models in different divisions. In my division, there were about eighty people, all men. And we competed in runway and print competitions. I managed to take the overall competition with using your five best slides, and then you wore two outfits on the runway. You modeled them in front of different judges from different agencies and different photographers here in New York. It was a good competition. I thought it was going to be real cutthroat, and that the people were going to be out to win. For winning in the competition, they gave me a nice sized trophy and about $3,000 to help me in my modeling, so I can stay in New York and live for a while until I can find work. Hopefully, that'll help. It has so far.

[80s pop music]

Leza Van Beuren: The other day, I went to the yacht club for July Fourth festivities. I walked into the bathroom, I had lost my purse the night before, I had mascara underneath my eyes and I felt like – you name it, you fill it in. I walked over and Rose says to me, "Oh, Leza, you look awful!” And I looked at her and I thought, "Uh-oh." She said "You want a brush?" I said, "I don't think so, because when I look awful, I don't have to worry about going to the mirror every five minute and doing this." She just kind of looked at me and I just turned right around and said, "Screw it, I'm leaving," and I did.

Brooke Shields: I had just finished Sahara, and the reason why we finished it in December – we started it in December, excuse me. Right now, I am just going to go to school and hopefully, I will be making films during the summer. 

Maura Moynihan: Aren't you going to sing the title song for Sahara?

Brooke Shields: Yes, I will be singing the title song for Sahara. We haven't quite finished it. We haven't really decided what song we're going to sing. 

Maura Moynihan: Is it written yet?

Brooke Shields: No, it's not written yet, but it will be. It will be me.

Maura Moynihan: Are you dating anyone right now?

Brooke Shields: No. I mean, I – 

Maura Moynihan: Did you date in high school or not?

Brooke Shields: I went out on a few dates, but it always seemed too – I was always very busy and I always was – I really, I like to go to school and I like to work, so I was always spending more time working or going to school. It always seemed that dating always – it never was easy, it was never simple. I would go out on a date and all of a sudden, the "relationship" was established. It just seemed so crazy to me and I just wanted to – I would have rather have friends. I went out with groups of kids, and groups of boys and girls, and I had a much better time. I'm not ready, hardly ready for a – 

Maura Moynihan: Are you still friends with John Travolta? Did you ever really have a romance with him?

Brooke Shields: I went out with him for a while. We had tried, really, to keep it quiet. First we were really good friends, and then as we went out more, we became even closer friends. It was really unfair with the way it happened, because publicity-wise and the press really, we had really tried to keep it quiet, and because we didn't want – 

Maura Moynihan: To exploit the relationship.

Brooke Shields: To exploit anything like that at all. Both of our films were coming out at the same time, and we didn't want to have to take anything away from either of the films. It was written that it was just a hype for the films, and it really wasn't.  We really did like each other and I'm still good friends with him. I still talk to him on the phone and I call him, and we have a good friendly relationship now.

Maura Moynihan: Do you threaten men? The men that you meet?

Brooke Shields: I don't mean to, I don't try to.

Maura Moynihan: But do you think you do, just because you are so beautiful, and well known, successful?

Brooke Shields: I wouldn't really know, but I have a feeling that some men feel, or some guys feel uncomfortable around me and I can't really figure out why. I really try to just be as regular and normal. I haven't quite figured it out yet.

Maura Moynihan: Do you have a lot of men friends who are perfectly relaxed with you?

Brooke Shields: Not very many.

Maura Moynihan: Really?

Brooke Shields: The few that I do have, I am close to and I can call. There are only a few, really.

Maura Moynihan: Are they your own age? Or are they older?

Brooke Shields: Some are my own age, and a couple are older. It's nice, because then in time, if there's a man that you're just friendly with, you can learn about other men through your friend, and without being threatened about asking any questions or without being worried that you'll be interpreted the wrong way. 

Maura Moynihan: Do you exercise a lot of control over the image of you that the public sees? Are you happy with it?

Brooke Shields: I can control that, again, just to a point. I know what I am as a person, and any kind of an image that I keep is really just for myself. People will look at me and see me basically the way they want to see me. I think I can just do so much. The way I'm portrayed in just interviews is really the way I am. Of course, people will have their own opinions.

Maura Moynihan: But you do have a down to earth, normal, daily routine, and school life and family life.

Brooke Shields: I think the school life and the family life have helped. I do work and I am very active and I'm very busy, but I always have my school and my family and I think that helps a great deal. Because you can get so caught up in any area that you are involved in.

[80s pop music]

Voice one: Stay tuned for Palm Beach Polo.

Voice one: Piaget, the world's most expensive watchmakers, celebrated their first sponsorship of a World Cup Championship Polo match. Yves Piaget concorded his favorite group of trendsetters to begin the celebration at Regine’s in New York City, then continued onto Palm Beach, for the Piaget World Cup Ball and Polo Match.

[unintelligible chatting]

Brooke Shields: Actually, I have school tomorrow. That’s my work right now, yes.

Voice three: What are we supposed to do now?

Andy Warhol: Freak out. God, three beautiful girls. All these beautiful – five beautiful girls.

Voice four: [foreign language].

Andy Warhol: What a bunch of great girls. Wow, gee. Yeah. Come on girls, take your double champagne.

Voice five: Have you had a personal interest yourself, Mr. Piaget, in polo?

Yves Piaget: Not really in polo, but in horse, I would say. In my country, unfortunately, we don't play polo. But polo for me is really a fascinating sport.

Voice five: Has your family been in the watchmaking business for years?

Yves Piaget: Oh, yeah. We represent now the fourth generation. My great-grandfather founded the first watch shop in 1874 in Switzerland. He was a farmer, and during the winter time and in the evenings, he worked on watchmaking, and my grandfather did the same. Finally, my father and his brothers developed the company. Our prices are pretty high, because it's hand-manufactured first, and we only make watches in gold and in platinum exclusively. We never made one piece in stainless steel or something like that. We always use the latest technology, apply the latest technology, so our movements are really – of very high quality. And that means that our watches are maybe the most expensive in the world, and I hope the most beautiful, too.

Voice six: [over loudspeaker] Glades High School marching band will begin. Ready to start playing.

[brass instruments playing slowly, but grandly]

[steady drum beats underneath brass]

[faster, isolated drum line beats]

Hebe Dorsey: I spent some time in Palm Beach a few years ago, and I was surprised by the number of young people, and also this sort of formal wear here. Yesterday, for instance, the young girls were dressed in shorts, which I thought was very much “in,” then today they're wearing hats, which is like turning the clock back. I thought that the people are very well dressed –  not too much sequin upon sequin, kind of thing, like they used to. That was too much for a while. There are a few women that I thought were badly dressed because they were underdressed, but on the whole, they were very well dressed. It was a very good looking room, and a lot of young people, which is surprising for Palm Beach. I've been told that Palm Beach was getting younger, but I couldn't believe it. Apparently it's true, it's happening. 

[old time jazz music]

Hebe Dorsey: I think it's like all parties: it's a see-and-be-seen game, primarily. Don't you?

Voice six: [over loudspeaker] There's a little bank shot now that we see. Number one coming in. Turning the play now. Nice play from Penlo downfield to Howard who takes it on the near side. Down here the one-hundred-thousand-dollar Piaget World Cup is now underway, and by the way, coming in at number one –

Andy Warhol: How big is a polo field?

Maura Moynihan: It's three times the length of a football field.

Andy Warhol: What's a chucker?

Maura Moynihan: A chucker is one of the rounds in the game. There are six chuckers and each chucker is seven minutes.

[marching band music]

Andy Warhol: How many players on a team?

Maura Moynihan: There are four players on a team.

Andy Warhol: What happens at intermission?

Maura Moynihan: At intermission, the audience goes out onto the field and they replace all the holes that the horses tore up in the field with new grass.

[unintelligible announcements over loudspeaker]

[excited, faster announcements over loudspeaker]

[slow siren]

[clapping]

Voice seven: [unintelligible]. Turn, look back! Turn and look! Get him out!

Voice eight: [unintelligible]. Pretty tough, huh? 

Voice seven: Taught them not to get back.

Voice nine: They don't understand. We wanted to keep these [unintelligible]. We're the professionals. We train the horses. Not them.

[heavy horse breathing]

Voice eight: He must be hurting.

Voice nine: Yeah, I know.

[excited announcement over loudspeaker]

[fast horse steps]

[crowd cheering and clapping]

[ambulance sirens]

[fading announcements over loudspeaker] 

0:00

0:00


On the Hour

A 30-second online art project:
Frank WANG Yefeng, The Levitating Perils #2

Learn more about this project

Learn more at whitney.org/artport

On the Hour projects can contain motion and sound. To respect your accessibility settings autoplay is disabled.