Santa Claus From Myths, 1981; Screenprint in colors with diamond dust on Lenox Museum Board; Signed Andy Warhol and numbered 156/200 in pencil lower right; Published by Ronald Feldman Fine Arts, Inc., New York; Framed with a linen wood liner, gold fillet, gold wood exterior frame, red hand painted wood fillet, and UV conservation clear glass; Sheet 38" x 38", Frame 46" x 45 1/2"; Catalogue Raisonne: Feldman/Schellmann: II.266.
To purchase this work or to visit the Art Gallery, CLICK HERE
To purchase this work or to visit the Art Gallery, CLICK HERE
In 1981, Andy Warhol created a series of works that he called Myths. They were all portraits of iconic figures and included, The Star a portrait of Greta Garbo from the film Mata Hari, Uncle Sam, Mammy, Howdy Doody, Superman, The Witch, Dracula, Mickey Mouse, Santa Claus, and The Shadow, a profile portrait of Andy Warhol in red casting a shadow on a wall beside him. In addition to Warhol's use of bold graphic colors, he added diamond dust to the prints. Diamond dust was Andy's term for the finely crushed glass that was added to the lines and/or the background of his serigraphed prints. The resulting works were spectacular, and the diamond dust was the magical sparkle that seemed to make the works even more mythical!
Close up of the edition number and the Andy Warhol signature.
Santa Claus, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, Santy, or simply Santa is a mythical figure who, in many Western cultures, brings gifts to "good" children on Christmas Eve and the early morning hours of Christmas Day. The modern day Santa Claus is derived from a combination of the British figure of Father Christmas, the Dutch figure of Sinterklaas, and Saint Nicholas the historical Greek bishop and gift-giver of Myra.
L. Frank Baum's 1902 children's book The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, further popularized Santa Claus. Because much of Santa Claus's history was not set in stone at the time, this allowed Baum plenty of room to provide a history and greater character development. Images of Santa Claus were further popularized through the artist Haddon Sundblom's depiction of him for The Coca-Cola Company's Christmas advertising campaign of the 1930's. The popularity of the now idealized image created urban legends that Santa Claus was invented by The Coca-Cola Company, or that Santa wears red and white because they are the colors used to promote the Coca-Cola brand; neither of which is true.
Framed "Santa Claus' by Andy Warhol.
Andy Warhol adored Christmas and created a great many works of art centered around the Holiday, as well as numerous advertising campaigns. This work, "Santa Claus," from 1981 was created by Warhol by first photographing an individual dressed up as Santa and then selecting the best photograph in which to begin work. The image was then cropped, paint colors chosen; and after, silkscreening, Diamond Dust was glued on top of the outlines giving "Santa Claus" a mythical and magical quality. This is a wonderful original work by Andy Warhol using a great Pop Art iconic image, and should be hung on the wall and shown all year long!
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