Andy Warhol (1928-1987)

Andy Warhol (1928 to 1987) was an American artist, filmmaker, and cultural figure who defined the Pop Art movement with works like his Campbell's Soup Cans and silkscreen portraits of celebrities. He was gay at a time when that was genuinely dangerous, and his New York studio, known as the Factory, became a gathering place for artists, musicians, drag performers, and transgender stars including Candy Darling and Holly Woodlawn, several of whom he cast in his films. Warhol's art questioned fame, consumer culture, and identity, and his openness about queerness shaped generations of artists. He died in 1987 from complications after gallbladder surgery. His work and the world he built remain touchstones of queer art history.