Arts & Culture

Warhol By The Book At WCMA

WAMC Northeast Public Radio | By Sarah LaDuke

Published March 26, 2015 at 11:33 AM EDT

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Andy Warhol, 25 Cats Name Sam and One Blue Pussy, 1954, (Printed by Semour Berlin, written by Charles Lisanby), bound artist’s book with hand coloring. Courtesy of Williams College Museum of Art, Gift of Richard F. Holmes, Class of 1946. ";

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Andy Warhol, Andy Warhol's Index (Book), 1967, (pre-publication designer's copy). Courtesy of Williams College Museum of Art, Gift of Richard F. Holmes, Class of 1946.

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Andy Warhol, Wild Raspberries, 1959, bound artist's book (cookbook), litho-offset, hand coloring throughout with tissue overlays. Courtesy of Williams College Museum of Art, Gift of Richard F. Holmes, Class of 1946.

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4. Andy Warhol, Shoe of the Evening, Beautiful Shoe, ca. 1955. Courtesy of The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh.

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5. Andy Warhol, A Gold Book by Andy Warhol, 1957 (Designed by Miss Georgie Duffie), litho-offset. Courtesy of Williams College Museum of Art, Gift of Richard F. Holmes, Class of 1946.

The first US exhibition to concentrate on artist Andy Warhol’s book work, Warhol by the Book opened at the Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA) March 7 and will be on view through August 16.

From his time as a student in the 1940s to his death in 1987, Warhol created and collected books - in his creations experimenting with form and content. The exhibition at WCMA contains more than 400 objects covering more than 80 book titles including unique and unpublished materials that are brought together by WCMA and The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, PA - the city where Warhol was, of course, born.

The exhibition showcases a range of material including paintings, drawings, prints, photographs, and artist’s books. It also includes projections of sixteen Screen Test portrait-films of writers.

Matt Wrbican is the Chief Archivist at The Andy Warhol Museum and the Curator of Warhol by the Book. We met in the galleries now housing the show as installation was being completed a few weeks ago.