Andy Warhol

Book excerpt: Provide your readers with a memorable bio about a memorable man. "Paintings are too hard. Machines have less problems..." In the 1960s, Andy Warhol became the most famous creator of "pop art," which transformed mass-produced items of popular culture into works of fine art. From Campbell's Soup cans to photographs of Marilyn Monroe, Warhol was willing to use anything and everything from the mass media in his work, and by so doing, expanded the range of subject matter available to artists. His avant-garde films, artistic usage of American icons, and unconventional social life made him a controversial figure, both greatly admired and deeply reviled. A trendsetter rather than a trend-follower, a dispassionate observer of both the seamy and celebrity sides of life, Warhol's rebellious art and cultural commentary were oddly prescient.