Andy Warhol, Lorna Luft, 1982

Andy Warhol, Dolly Parton, 1985

Andy Warhol: Behind the Camera

When Andy Warhol died in February 1987, he left behind a trove of almost 60,000 photographs, the bulk of them unknown to all but his inner circle. They consisted mostly of two kinds: 3 x 4 inch Polaroid images and 8 x 10-inch black and white prints. Ironically, for an artist whose claim to fame lay in his use of serial repetition, Warhol’s photographs were mostly unique affairs, whether the inherently singular Polaroids or the typically one-offack-and-white prints made to specification in Warhol’s darkroom by personal assistants.

The exhibition, Andy Warhol: Behind the Camera includes 60 works drawn from the 150 photographs gifted to the University Museums of the University of Delaware by The Andy Warhol Photographic Legacy program. It is the first time these photographs have been publicly shown. Prime examples of Warhol’s obsessive camerawork, they illustrate the artist’s largely unknown achievements in photography, which are as distinctive as his celebrated paintings, prints, and films.

The work of some photographers is forever identified with the particular cameras they used; Henri Cartier-Bresson and his state-of-the art Leica come to mind. This is true also of Warhol, who loved certain cameras to the point of obsession. But unlike fine-art photographers who typically master complicated equipment, Warhol invariably opted for devices marketed to the home consumer with as few controls as possible. Whether expensive Japanese miniature cameras or cheap Polaroid models, what mattered for Warhol was the lack of photographic “knowledge” required to operate them.

A fully illustrated catalogue: Andy Warhol:Behind the Camera by Stephen Petersen is available for $20. The first 200 UD students to visit the exhibition and present their ID will receive a free catalogue.

Lecture:
Thursday, February 17
5:00 pm
Gallery Talk by Stephen Petersen
Reception to follow
Rsvp appreciated: universitymuseums@udel.edu