“Pop Art Movement”

Porter Hilgenberg - Humanities 11

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Mission of the Pop Art Movement:
There is no hierarchy in art culture.
The Pop Art Movement values popular culture over
elitist culture, and demonstrates those beliefs by
challenging art culture through the propagation of
imagery from societies average everyday items and
lifestyle.

Popular imagery used in Pop Art is sourced from:

● Mass Consumerism
● Media Stars
● Patriotism
● Domesticity
● Gender Roles
● Sex Appeal
● Commercial Advertising
● & any other “anti-unique” qualities of life
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What’s The Point:
Challenging The American Dream?
“Pop Artists” wanted to use satire as a way to
challenge America’s deep roots in industrialism,
classism, and materialism. These brightly-colored
works of art were created in hopes of raising
awareness to our societies kitschy, but most common
way of life.

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Pop Art Movement Historical Context:

A Brief History of Pop Art in America-

The Pop Art Movement began around 1950, and had spiked in popularity by the late 1950s. After
World War 2 had ended, people in our country were able to buy and spend more of their money
than ever before. This surge in consumerism and mass reproduction is what first inspired pop artists
to reject the traditions of art and bring mainstream items into the art world's elite culture. By doing
all of this, pop artists were not only able to stress the gaudiness of art culture, but also of America’s
culture.

Pop Art was used as a platform to share opinions and spread hope throughout
America’s post-war society!

The Pop Art Movement had reached its prime era by the 1960s, and the movement had slowed
down by 1970. However, the pop art technique is still used to this day to challenge the very roots
that our country is built on.
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Relevance today?:
In the age of technology, sharing our art, writing, and opinions has never been easier. I can become the star of my own social
network in just the click of a button, and because of this the core of the Pop Art Movement is still practiced in the 21st Century.

Pop Art can be simplified as any art that makes commentary on

any consumerist culture or world events/movements. Most
modern artists create their work by taking inspiration from the
guidelines of Pop Art. An example of Pop Arts relevance today
is the artist Simon Heijdens, who used technology to create a
room without noise, light, and color to stimulate the sensory
avalanche that humans live with everyday. Even though his
work isn’t filled with bright colors and soup cans, it’s still
created with the intention to make relevant social commentary
Another example of modern
on prevalent world issues. Pop Art: this is graffiti and
pop artists Banksys, “Girl
Frisking Soldier”

Simon Heijdens, “Silent Room”

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Key Events:
1945: World War 2 Ended- When WW2 was over America had one of the most remarkable post war comebacks of
an economy known to date! The Way We Won: America’s Economic Breakthrough During WW2 states, “During the war 17 million
new civilian jobs were created, industrial productivity increased by 96 percent, and corporate profits after taxes doubled”
(Goodwin). This lead to an increased amount of consumer products on the market, even if we subtracted all of the war rations from
the equation.

1958: Pop Art Essay- By 1958, the Pop Art Movement had already caused controversy across the United States and in
the same year, a man named Lawrence Alloway only added to that controversy. Alloway had written an essay titled The Arts and
The Mass Media, which basically summarized that the old ways of art or the “Renaissance Theory” only fueled a limited society.
He wrote that now art incompasses “the whole complex of human activities” (Alloway). He described the rejection of classicism,
materialism, and mass media as an attack on our culture. This essay helped popularize the Pop Art Movement and it also helped
American citizens understand the curiosities of pop art.

1968: Andy Warhol is shot- Valerie Solanas, a radical schizophrenic feminist writer shot and almost killed the
iconic pop-artist Andy Warhol. Allegedly, Solanas had become paranoid and obsessed with Warhol and it drove her to commit this
act of violence which lead Warhol to slowly abandon his artistic career. Along with Andy Warhol's lack of creative output, we also
saw an increase of death and violence related imagery appear in what little work he was doing. Since Warhol was one, if not, the
leading artist of the Pop Art Movement, this incident overall caused the movement to decelerate.

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Key individuals or other movements involved:

Andy Warhol- Born on August 6th, 1928, Warhol was on the most influential leaders of
the Pop Art Movement. Andy Warhol's grip on the art community lasted from 1956-1980s
and to this day his work is celebrated worldwide! When Warhol was in the peak of his art
career many people believed his work was too controversial, but that was the whole point.
Through Pop Art Andy brought consumerism to the forefront of the art world. He broke all
of the traditional rules of art by using his talents to reflect on society.
Robert Rauschenberg- Born on October 22, 1925, Rauschenberg best known for his
urban American landscapes, was an American graphic artist and painter whose work
heavily inspired the Pop Art Movement. His use of multimedias, bright colors, and
everyday objects and materials helped lay the foundation for pop art!
Neo Dada: Neo Dada was an art movement similar to Pop Art in the sense that they both
try and blur the gap between art and everyday life. Neo Dada focuses on more movement
to try and bring the human experience into art through silliness and iconoclasm. The Neo
Dada movement was another key inspiration for the Pop Art Movement.

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Strategies for Social Change -
● Humor Pop Art used its simplified imagery, humor, and irony to
● Irony bring societies attention towards capitalism and
● Satire consumerist culture. In the late 1940s-50s, Pop Art used
● cultural elements to help Americans see the
Elements from everyday
improvements of living in a “postwar consumers
life
paradise” (SplashofArts 2022). Putting more simplistic
● Things that people can
elements of life into the elite art world was used as a
relate to (food, well-known strategy to show that there is no hierarchy in culture.
celebrities, and events) These efforts made by pop artists can be used to challenge
more things than just the social scale. Modern-day pop
artists have used the methods to attack issues like gender
inequality, homophobia, the class struggle, mental health
issues, and just the overall wellbeing of people.

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Opposition to the Movement:
There is a hierarchy to art culture, and that's how it should be: Critiques of the Pop Art Movement believe that
the hierarchy of the art world should remain intact so that artists who put in minimal effort or lack traditional talent
cannot rise in social status.

The Pop Art Movement strides itself in dismantling capitalist and consumerist
culture, but the Pop Art itself contradicts that very statement. When pop artists use
iconic pop culture symbols as imagery or inspiration in their art, they are not only
facilitating capitalism but they are also giving brands free advertising. Some would
say that taking an item like Campbells Soup (an affordable resource for people
living in a lower class), and turning into an art piece that sells for millions of
dollars is stealing from a group of people who don’t have very much to begin with.
With these reasonings in mind, many people see the Pop Art Movement as
unethical and hollow.

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References Cited
1). “What Effect Did Pop Art Have on American Culture ?” Splash of Arts, 27 Feb. 2022, splash-of-arts.com/blogs/wall-art-blog/what-effect-did-pop-art-
have-on-american-culture.

2). Art, The Trendy. “Why Is Pop Art Controversial ?” The Trendy Art, 8 Aug. 2022, thetrendyart.com/blogs/art-blog/why-is-pop-art-controversial.

3). “Pop Art Movement Overview.” The Art Story, www.theartstory.org/movement/pop-art. Accessed 27 Oct. 2022.

4). Wolfe, Shira. “Art Movement: Pop Art.” Artland Magazine, 10 Oct. 2022, magazine.artland.com/art-movement-pop-art.

5). Inamdar, Sana. “11 Famous Pop Art Paintings and Their Secrets (2022 List).” Turn Your Photos to Handmade Portraits - PortraitFlip, 21 Sept. 2022,
www.portraitflip.com/blog/pop-art-paintings.

6). Goodwin, Doris. “The Way We Won: America’s Economic Breakthrough During World War II.” The American Prospect, 9 Apr. 2021,
prospect.org/health/way-won-america-s-economic-breakthrough-world-war-ii.

7). “The Arts and the Mass Media - Lawrence Alloway.” ART THEORY, theoria.art-zoo.com/the-arts-and-the-mass-media-lawrence-alloway. Accessed 27
Oct. 2022.

8). History, Pop Art. “Pop Art Timeline.” Pop Art History, www.poparthistory.com/timeline.html. Accessed 27 Oct. 2022.

9). Kordic, Angie. “What Is Pop Art in the 21st Century?” Widewalls, 20 Nov. 2015, www.widewalls.ch/magazine/what-is-pop-art.

10). Barnett, Patty. “Is Pop Art Prevalent to Today’s Society? ».” Barnett Fine Art, 11 Aug. 2016, www.barnettfineart.com/blog/collectable-art/is-pop-art-
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prevalent-to-todays-society.