A major Andy Warhol show at Tate Modern will tell the story of the man who rose from humble immigrant origins to become one of the most recognisable artists of the 20th century.
Curators have gathered together more than 100 works of art and even three of his wigs in an attempt to show how Warhol, the shy son of an eastern European Catholic coal miner in Pittsburgh, transformed himself into the king of New York’s avant-garde.
It is the first time the toupees, which were designed by Warhol himself, have gone on show in the UK. Curator Gregor Muir said they played a central part in Warhol’s attempt to “turn himself into an artwork”. He said: “He designed them himself and would also cut and colour them himself after they were made for him. They are absolutely fascinating to see.” Warhol, who started wearing wigs in the Fifties after beginning to go bald, is believed to have owned more than 100 when he died in 1987.
Mr Muir said: “The wigs will be displayed next to one of the so-called Fright Wig paintings so you will absolutely make the connection.”
The show will also feature work including the huge 10 metre-wide canvas Sixty Last Suppers, inspired by a copy of Leonardo da Vinci’s work which hung in the family kitchen while he grew up, as well as his trademark images of celebrities such as Debbie Harry and Marilyn Monroe. A Pop Art pioneer, Warhol set up home in New York where his Factory studio produced paintings, films and books. It also provided the artist with a base from where he promoted the career of rock band The Velvet Underground.
The exhibition, the first at the gallery in almost two decades to be dedicated to his work, will also feature a recreation of his Exploding Plastic Inevitable shows from the Sixties which featured performances by the band and psychedelic light shows.
Mr Muir said: “Warhol wasn’t precious about how he put himself into the world of ideas. He would go on TV shows, make films, publish magazines. His idea was to do everything, he would have fully understood social media.”
The exhibition will also include his series of portraits of drag queens and trans women in New York — one of a series of large-scale paintings he embarked on after narrowly surviving being shot by radical feminist Valerie Solanas in 1968.
At the time, none of the sitters were named but last year researchers at the Andy Warhol Foundation identified all but one of the 14 subjects, including Marsha P Johnson who played a key role in the Stonewall riot of 1969 which became a landmark moment in the campaign for gay rights.
