DUBAI: Artworks by late pop art icon Andy Warhol will be displayed in the UAE as part of “The Glam Factory” exhibition at the Foundry gallery in Dubai.
Curated by Nada Ghandour, “The Glam Factory” highlights Warhol, a prominent American artist in the 1960s known for his pop art style. “Campbell’s Soup Cans,” “Marilyn Monroe” and “Banana” are among his most famous pieces.
In an interview with Arab News, Heritage Curator Nada Ghandour described the exhibition as a “new reading of Andy Warhol’s work through the lens of our digital era and here in Dubai.”
Warhol moved to New York City in 1949 to pursue his American Dream and become rich and famous, said Ghandour.
“People today come to Dubai to also live out this dream. The American dream is more about opportunity and prosperity, and we know that many people today are moving to Dubai because it is a destination for stability and growth,” she explained.
Inspired by Warhol’s workshop “The Silver Factory,” Ghandour named the exhibition “The Glam Factory,” paying homage to his artistic process.
To draw a portrait, she explained, Warhol would take about 150 photos. He would then choose small parts from each photo and mix them together.
“He was capable of doing the job of a plastic surgeon; this was the glamorous and beautiful aspect of it,” she said.
Ghandour described Warhol as an artistic and technological visionary.
“Warhol was ahead of his time and was describing the artificial intelligence that we know now,” she said.
If he were alive now, she added, “he would speak to AI to create something in collaboration with a computer.”
The collection features over 100 of Warhol’s original pieces including screen prints, photos and magazine illustrations.
Located at the Foundry art space in Downtown Dubai, “The Glam Factory” exhibition is set to run from Sept. 20 to Oct. 31 of this year.
