In 1978, at age 50,
embarked upon the production of a monumental body of work titled Shadows with the assistance of his entourage at the Factory. Conceived as one painting in multiple parts, with the final number of canvases being determined by the dimensions of an exhibition space, these 102 silkscreened canvas panels formalized the artist’s earlier explorations of abstraction.
All 102 canvases are on view at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (26.02.2016 - 02.10.2016) . Displaying Warhol’s signature palette of bright hues, the backgrounds of Shadows were painted with a sponge mop, the streaks and trails it left adding gesture to the picture plane. Seven or eight different screens were used to create the series, as is evidenced in the slight shifts in scales of dark areas as well as the arbitrary presence of spots of light. The “shadows” alternate between positive and negative imprints as they march along the wall of the gallery. In focusing on the shadow to devise light—that is to say, sparks of color—Warhol returns to the quintessential problem of art: perception. (Text: Guggenheim Bilbao)
All 102 canvases are on view at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (26.02.2016 - 02.10.2016) . Displaying Warhol’s signature palette of bright hues, the backgrounds of Shadows were painted with a sponge mop, the streaks and trails it left adding gesture to the picture plane. Seven or eight different screens were used to create the series, as is evidenced in the slight shifts in scales of dark areas as well as the arbitrary presence of spots of light. The “shadows” alternate between positive and negative imprints as they march along the wall of the gallery. In focusing on the shadow to devise light—that is to say, sparks of color—Warhol returns to the quintessential problem of art: perception. (Text: Guggenheim Bilbao)