If Andy Warhol was right when he said, “Good business is the best art,” then the Brooklyn Museum can bet that business will be booming starting in mid-June, as it will host a retrospective of the final decade of the pop artist’s life.
During his last 10 years, Warhol departed from his iconic pop imagery and ventured into more abstract territory — though critics still accused him of being a mainstream artist turning a profit from mainstream concepts.
Whether much of his work in the last decade was a shallow means to make easy money or a brilliant reflection of the superficiality of the 1970s and ’80s will be left up to the viewers, who can check out the exhibit from June 18 to September 12.
The nearly 50 paintings on display will be from both public and private collections, and will mark the first major survey of Warhol in the city since a 1989 exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art.
The period highlighted stands as a particularly prolific period in Warhol’s career, as he produced his “Shadows” series (complete with diamond dust), the “Oxidation” series (complete with urine) and the “Last Supper” series (complete with Jesus, price tags and motorcycles).
Many of the paintings, which Warhol made on the side while continuing to paint commissioned portraits, were not displayed until after his death in 1987.
Other paintings will feature collaborations with fellow legends of the New York art scene, such as Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring.
And yes, there will be at least one “Campbell’s Soup” painting.
“Andy Warhol: The Last Decade” at the Brooklyn Museum [200 Eastern Pkwy. at Washington Avenue in Prospect Heights, (718) 638-5000], June 18–Sept. 12. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
