ON ANDY WARHOL @ Tribeca Y

The discussion on Andy Warhol was with his nephew, James Warhola and Thomas Kiedrowski, author of Andy Warhol's NYC.  This talk coincides with the Warhold exhibit now at the Metropolitan Museum.  Thomas Kiedrowski interviewed James Warhola who gave a friendly first hand account of growing up with Warhol as his uncle.  James shared many interesting tidbits of Warhol's life.  For starters, Andy dropped the a from his last name.  Andy was born and raised in Pittsburg to immigrants from Slovakia.  His first language was Ruthenian.  He didn't learn to speak English until he went to school.  But Warhol didn't care for school so his mother home schooled him from age 6-8.  James spoke of the tight bond between Andy & his mother.  I would even call Andy a moma's boy.  His  father died when he was 13.  To make money for the family, Andy's mother went door to door selling sculptures she made from soup cans.  Andy studied Art @ Carnegie Tech where he antagonized many of his professors but made a big impression on his classmates.  After graduating,  Andy began working in NYC doing illustrations of shoes.  James said that he told his uncle that he wanted to become an illustrator but his uncle told him to focus on photography instead.  (James has gone on to illustrate over 300 books.) When Andy moved to the city his mother moved with him and cared for him.  James said that Andy kept his family life separate from his work & associates.  It was rare that Andy brought anyone into his home.  James said that Andy had a very strong work ethic that he learned from his mother.  The 60's were a very prolific period for his work which expanded into films and records.  Warhol's seminal pop artworks came from household items and silkscreens of celebrity and tragic events.  Thomas said that Andy's critics feel he was merely being cynical in his work.  However, Thomas said that Andy's work is "a mirror of our times and reflects back on who we are."  See the exhibit @ the Met. I agree with Thomas and feel that Warhol's work will remain timeless.