Analysis of Warhol's Marilyn Monroe Portrait

Andy Warhol's "Marilyn Diptych" could be called the meeting of two icons. An analysis of Warhol's Marilyn Monroe portrait reveals a deeper symbolism, despite criticism panning the artist's seemingly slapdash silkscreen creation.

Tragic heroine as inspiration

The 1962 suicide death of the tragically beautiful and beautifully tragic Hollywood creation, Marilyn Monroe, inspired artist Andy Warhol to render her famous face in a series of portraits. Warhol chose a still photo of the actress from the movie "Niagara" as the theme for his silkscreen Marilyn portraits, collectively titled the "Marilyn Diptych." Not coincidentally, the term diptych often refers to hinged paintings of religious icons that form an altarpiece. Warhol's diptych is an homage and a permanent memorial to the actress who died far too soon.

Pop culture meets fine art

Especially during the decade of the 1960s, Andy Warhol produced a number of portraits of cultural tragic heroes and heroines. Elvis Presley, Liz Taylor, Jackie O, Muhammad Ali and most famously Marilyn Monroe were immortalized by the artist in his revolutionary and controversial mass-production method, combining silkscreen and photographic images to create stark images of prominent figures in American culture. Not all critics appreciated the way Warhol married pop culture and fine art to create "pop art."

Rich symbolism

In the "Marilyn Diptych," the tragic blonde's familiar face is reproduced 50 times, similar to a sheet of postage stamps. This repeated imagery symbolizes how the Hollywood film industry erased every trace of Marilyn's uniqueness. Half of the images are rendered in vibrant hues, depicting the woman herself; these images could be said to depict small-town girl Norma Jean, not the film goddess she would become. The remaining images, arranged diptych fashion or side by side, are rendered in starker black and white, sometimes blurred shades. The effect is that of a photo negative, echoing the actress as an overexposed commodity.

Despite the often critical reception to Warhol's Marilyn portraits, his silkscreen homage to the tragic blonde is today regarded as among the most influential works of the 20th century.