Van Heusen (Ronald Reagan) (F. & S. II.356)
Van Heusen (Ronald Reagan) (F. & S. II.356)
Signed Print
Andy Warhol
Screenprint, 1985
Signed Print Edition of 190
H 96cm x W 96cm
Critical Review
Van Heusen (Ronald Reagan) (F. & S. II.356) is a signed screen print produced by Andy Warhol, one of the leading figures of the Pop Art movement, in 1985. The print, which comes in a limited edition size of 190, shows Ronald Reagan in a shirt and tie advertising Van Heusen shirts. Reagan is captured from his shoulders up and Warhol uses red gestural lines to delineate his body and facial features. Reagan is rendered against a plain white backdrop which makes the red outlines and turquoise shirt stand out and dominate the composition. Next to Reagan and written in a sophisticated red and green font is Van Heusen’s slogan.
The print is based on an advert from 1953 that the American politician did for Van Heusen shirts. Warhol was fascinated by consumerism and often produced prints of everyday consumer objects like Campbell’s Soup cans or high heel shoes. This print belongs to Warhol’s Ads series which the artist produced two years before his death in 1987. In this collection of ten prints, Warhol takes popular adverts from the 1950s and memorialises them by reproducing them using his Pop Art aesthetic.
Mass consumerism is a theme that runs through this print and the others in the Ads series. Warhol’s ability to take popular adverts and turn them into works of fine art captures how the artist was constantly questioning the value of art and what could be considered ‘fine art’ or ‘high culture’.
