Andy Warhol: The Textiles – the iconic artist's 'overlooked' beginnings
Warhol's early commercial work 'presaged' his ascendance to pop art stardom
![A pattern designed by Andy Warhol with a repeating pattern of colourful ice cream cones](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/Rjf2WETRWMjxmi7hLqeRgj-415-80.jpg)
During the decade before he emerged as "the world's most famous postwar artist" in the 1960s, Andy Warhol worked in the world of commercial design and advertising, said Giles Sutherland in The Times. His illustrations for magazines and retail clients are already well documented, but one aspect of his pre-fame career – his work as a textile designer – has until recently been overlooked.
Warhol "did not design clothing, nor was he a couturier"; he sold his patterns to manufacturers, "often anonymously". The printed fabrics, emblazoned with "repeated motifs" of "socks, ice-creams, hats, shoes and butterflies", would then be used to create all kinds of "colourful fashion items", from "petite dresses" to "underwear, blouses and swimwear".
This exhibition brings together more than 35 original examples of Warhol's textile work, and "convincingly" argues that his commercial designs "necessarily presaged his emergence into pop art". It is "impeccably presented, researched and curated". All in all, it's "difficult to fault".
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Warhol began working as a commercial designer shortly after arriving in New York from his native Pittsburgh in 1949, said Francesca Peacock in The Daily Telegraph. His textiles were soon being sold across the US, mainly through department store catalogues. Examples of his handiwork here demonstrate that he was already on the way to establishing his artistic signature.
Nothing, it seems, can escape "his delight in repetition": in mid-1950s textile patterns, he covers fabrics with everything from "apples to rulers"; on one 1956 pattern, printed onto "a dress with a quintessential mid-1950s silhouette", he draws socks in a bewildering variety of styles – "striped, argyle, polka-dot, and baby booties". The one complaint about this otherwise "joyful" show is its insistence that his textile designs were somehow more "pure" than his other commercial commissions. There is no getting around the truth: what we have here is simply "a collection of material, consumer objects".
"The clothes themselves feel very 1950s and Doris Day, prim and conservative," said Waldemar Januszczak in The Sunday Times. When you see swatches of his fabrics on their own, however, "the unmistakable Warhol touch magics away the date and takes us somewhere timeless". His patterns are "light and airy", becoming ever "cheekier" and more absurdist as the show progresses: "birds and butterflies" on early pieces give way to "unlikely pieces of gardening equipment or weird types of writing implement"; everything is drawn with his "blotchy trademark line", usually against a white background.
There's humour, too. One cloth is "covered with pretend buttons", another with Manhattan pretzels; Warhol's "plebeian fondness for shopfront America" was not ironic. This show is a "delightful" exploration of "a lost bit of Warhol".
Dovecot Studios, Edinburgh (0131-550 3660, dovecotstudios.com). Until 18 May
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Big Tech's answer for AI-driven job loss: universal basic income
In The Spotlight A new study reveals the strengths and limitations
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
'I will not be silent' on Gaza, says Kamala Harris
Speed Read In a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Harris supported Israel's right to defend itself while expressing a desire to end Palestinian suffering
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
'How long can TikTok dominate as a social network?'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
7 dreamy products to help you sleep better on vacation
The Week Recommends Don't snooze on these sleep aids
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
Leonora Carrington: Rebel Visionary – an exhibition of 'unearthly delights'
The 'captivating' show features over 70 pieces spanning everything from paintings to tapestries
By The Week UK Published
-
Patrick Bishop picks his five favourite books
The acclaimed historian chooses works by Ernest Hemingway, Richard Cobb and more
By The Week UK Published
-
Lady in the Lake: 'brooding' murder-mystery casts 'a potent spell'
Natalie Portman gives a 'scene-stealing' show in period thriller
By The Week UK Published
-
Twisters review: 'warm-blooded' film explores dangerous weather
The Week Recommends The film, focusing on 'tornado wranglers', stars Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell
By The Week UK Published
-
Red Speedo: a 'darkly comic' doping drama
The Week Recommends Lucas Hnath's play stars Finn Cole as a 'reptilian' swimmer determined to win at all costs
By Irenie Forshaw, The Week UK Published
-
One Aldwych: where London's creative spirit takes centre stage
The Week Recommends This five-star Covent Garden hotel is the epitome of elegant independence
By Julia O'Driscoll, The Week UK Published
-
Have a seaside escape in Newport, Rhode Island
The Week Recommends For the quintessential New England experience, head to the Classic Coast
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published