The tension and social change that dominated the 1960s and 1970s is living on through art at the Syracuse University Art Galleries.

One of the four exhibits currently on display at the gallery is ‘On the Edge of Pop,’ an exhibit at the Schaffer Art building that features the work of artists including Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg and Robert Cottingham.

‘Pop art looks and feels really American,’ said Lindsey Zehr, a senior environmental biology major at State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. ‘It was a turning point where artists could express themselves in a really different way.’

Pop art, which originated during the 1960s and 1970s, was a revolutionary style of the time. Artists were heavily influenced by advertising and mass production, which resulted in a lot of screen prints, a process that is very industrial and makes mass production easy.

‘The post-World War II atmosphere caused a surge in mass manufacturing,’ said Elizabeth Fowler, a foundations professor at the College of Visual and Performing Arts. ‘There were a lot of materials available that weren’t before the war, but there was also a lot of political discontent going on with Vietnam and race issues.’

This discontent is featured in one of the exhibit’s significant pieces, a screen print called ‘Signs’ by Robert Rauschenberg. The print is a collage of different important people and events that occurred in the 1960s, such as John F. Kennedy’s presidency, Martin Luther King Jr. in his coffin, Janis Joplin and an image from the race riots.

‘Rauschenberg paralleled the negative things that were going on in America, like the assassinations of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy, and the positive things such as the influential music of Janis Joplin and the landing on the moon,’ Fowler said.

Arguably the most famous artist of pop art was Andy Warhol, whose four screen prints of Marilyn Monroe are on display.

‘I love the bold and bright colors that Andy Warhol uses,’ said Jessie Zehr, a sophomore art and design major. ‘Screen printing is such a simple idea and is so basic, but the colors really make it stand out.’

The four Marilyn Monroe prints feature the same headshot of the famous actress, done in different fluorescent colors. Each screen print is slightly different, and Warhol exaggerated certain features on different prints, such as Monroe’s beauty mark, or her eye shadow, to manipulate the famous image, drawing attention to the superficiality, Fowler said.

Warhol is most famous for his multiple prints of regular consumer products or celebrities, such as the Campbell’s soup can or the Coca-Cola bottle. His use of advertising images was a commentary on how products were taking over America.

‘People of the time didn’t really understand the satire,’ Fowler said. ‘They liked it because the images being used were recognizable. That’s why pop art is still famous today. People can draw parallels with Iraq and Vietnam, and we’re still fascinated with celebrities. The references are still with us, and the criticism Warhol and the other artists used is still relevant.’

Along with Warhol and Rauschenberg, the exhibit also features work from Robert Indiana, Raoul Middleman and Larry Rivers. Most of the works are screen prints, but there are also oil paintings and sculptures.

‘It’s really exciting to see works by accomplished artists like Warhol and Rauschenberg here at Syracuse,’ said Ellen Nanni, a sophomore printmaking major.

If you goWhat: On the Edge of PopWhere: Shaffer Art buildingWhen: Tuesday – Sunday, 11 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.; Thursday, 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. until March 4How much: Free

Published on February 11, 2007 at 12:00 pm