Shamash meets Andy Warhol - Marylin Diptych (1962)
Description
This painting is titled Marylin Diptych (1962) which was painted by Andy Warhol in 1962. This painting is Andy Warhol's magnum opus. Warhol painted Marilyn Diptych (1962) as a tribute to the late Marylin Monroe who died of a barbiturate overdose in 1962. Marilyn Monroe at that time was a world famous artist and also a sex symbol of her time, her beauty and sexy body made her loved by many men. Not a few world leaders have taken pictures with Marylin Monroe.
This painting consists of 50 different shooting sessions taken from Marylin Monroe's film Niagara (1953). Warhol was inspired to paint a portrait of Marylin Monroe, from the film Niagara (1953) because this film is the most phenomenal Marylin Monroe film. Of course Warhol did not choose it randomly, because Warhol himself knew Marylin Monroe and did have a cordial relationship with Marylin Monroe.
It can be seen in this painting using a touch of Warhol's signature pop art in painting Marylin Monroe. The pop art effect is clearly visible when we look at the left side of the coloured painting, while the right side is intentionally blurred in black and white. Marilyn Diptych combines two of Warhol's most consistent themes: death, and the cult of celebrity. The repetition of the image of Monroe, in Monroe's painting series, brings back the presence of Marylin Monroe who had appeared in various media, with the contrast of bright colours with black and white that evokes her death. The painting was praised for encapsulating Monroe's legacy, and was ranked as the third most influential work of modern art by The Guardian.