Materialism and modern art

In the 1960s, material objects and consumer goods crept into the world of art as
never before. The presence of well-known corporate symbols and mass-produced
goods in modern art reflected the commercialization of popular culture. Pop Art, as
the movement is called, has been defined as having a common concern with the
problems of the commercial image, popular culture and metaphysical disgust. The
concern of Pop Art with materialism suggests a sameness of mass production, the
common objects of our affluent society taken out of context and scrutinized for their
symbolic value.
In general, the Pop Art movement reflects the uncertainty with which consumer
researchers view materialism. On one hand, concepts like envy, possessiveness, and
materialism have psychologically negative implications. People who are materialistic
have been found to have less self-esteem, more conforming behavior, and so on. On
the other hand, consumption is researched as a vehicle to express ourselves, to
explore and maintain our identities, and enjoy the good life. The artists who
developed Pop Art, using commercial objects, advertising themes, and consumer
culture as their inspiration, also share this ambivalence. Some of the work seems to
glorify materialism, while other work supplies a devastating critique of the affluent
society.
Warhol’s work is most closely associated with Pop Art, and his themes are so
blatantly commercial that he stands in for much of commentary on the movement as
a whole. So, analysis of Pop Art and materialism naturally begins with Warhol. Two
other Pop artists will be discussed briefly, Tom Wessolmann, known for his still life
series, incorporating brand images and female forms; and Class
Oldenburg, known for his soft sculptural forms of consumer goods. They and other
Pop artists were united in their recognition of consumer goods as expressive devices
and a preoccupation with manufactured objects removed from nature. Pop Art’s
power stems largely from the symbolic connotations of brands and products, symbols
created by the ubiquitous and pervasive force of advertising.
The question of approval or disapproval of consumer culture by the artists and their
work is difficult to answer unequivocally. The artists themselves seem to be making
an anti-materialistic statement by calling attention to mass banality – the innocent
standardized products of our industrial society taken out of context and revealed in
their spiritual nakedness. However, Warhol claims that he painted Campbell soup
cans and Coca-Cola bottles because he consumed them every day and liked them. In
the mind of the viewer, Campbells and Coke serve as referential symbols, spewing
meaning all over the canvas. Moreover, companies like Campbells and Coke actively
cultivate symbolic associations through advertising, of course, but through other
means as well.
Art allows us to go beyond basic questions of good or bad and reflect on the nature
of our relationships with consumer culture. In so doing, Pop Art in particular reflects
and illuminates materialism.
2. Answer these questions according to the text. Use your own words as far
as possible.

a. Which features characterise the works of Pop artists Tom Wessolmann and Class
Oldenburg?
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b. Explain where Pop Art obtains its power and strength.
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c. How do artists explore standard products of our industrial society?

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d. Why does Pop Art reveal materialism?
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9 po
3. Identify what these words or expressions highlighted in the text
refer to.

a. their (l. 6) b. which (l. 7) c. his (l. 15)

4. Explain the meaning of these expressions taken from the text in 12 po

your own words.

a. The artists who developed Pop Art (...) also share this ambivalence. (ll.
11-13)
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b. Pop Art’s power stems largely from the symbolic connotations of brands and
products… (ll. 21-22)
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c. … innocent standardized products of our industrial society… (l. 26)

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