CULT! ART: THE GOLD OF POP

Protagonists :

• Eric SHINER, Director of the Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh
• Matt WRIBCAN, archivist at the Warhol Museum, Pittsburg
• Vincent FREMONT, friend and collaborator of Andy Warhol
• Dominique SAGOT-DUVAUROUX, economist, art market specialist
• Alain CUEFF, art historian
• Hector OBALK, art critic
• Michael HERMANN, Director of Licensing, Andy Warhol Foundation, NY
• Fred HOFFMAN, art dealer
• Daniel BUREN, artist
• Gilles LIPOVETSKY, sociologist

Culture, which was formerly exclusive to elites, is now a powerful, globalized, and massive industry. From best sellers to blockbusters, many creations are now part of the collective imagination. They have achieved cult status. The four-part documentary series “Cult” recounts the fate of four founding productions of this mass popular culture: Mario Bros. and video games, Johnny Hallyday’s first outdoor concert and the giant concerts, Andy Warhol’s Marilyn silkscreens and pop art, Dallas and television series.

Following Marilyn Monroe’s death in 1962, Andy Warhol began to paint dozens of portraits of the actress using the same black and white photograph, which he reproduced in multiple copies using the screen printing process. In so doing, Warhol challenged the boundaries between avant-garde research and popular and advertising graphics and put an end to the myth of the artwork as a unique object.

Andy Warhol was a prolific and complete artist, a painter, designer, advertiser, photographer, filmmaker, video maker, illustrator, magazine publisher, creator of fashions, costumes and even celebrities. He was probably the first to understand the importance of media and communication in our society. By claiming that pop art was intended for everyone, he expanded the territories of art to the point where it was seen everywhere, in museums, on the street, on posters and even on clothes and day-to-day objects. He also caused the art market to skyrocket, with his works reaching exceptional, unprecedented ratings after his death. From Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring to Jeff Koons, Damien Hirst and Takashi Murakami, Andy has inspired and fed the imagination of an entire line of contemporary artists that stand at the border between art and commerce, and who have become true stars, true brands.