Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol, Priest: the Last Supper Comes in Small, Medium, and Large

This title explores an interpretation of Andy Warhol's "The Last Supper Series". It brings together two worlds, the sacred and the secular. By showing how the sacred is manifest in advertising, it demonstrates the metaphorical power of popular imagery. Warhol bore out the proposition that an artist is essentially a "Yours faithfully". The essence of his "Last Supper series" lies in the mystery that should remain so: "mirari non rimari sapientia vera est". To scrutinize the host would be unfaithful to Christ, who said: "This is my Body". To perceive Warhol's work as simply signifying itself would be unfaithful to the most influential American artist. A case in point is "The Last Supper (Dove)": pictorial analysis proves that Leonardo's Il Cenacolo was not robbed of its sublimity. Warhol remained faithfully to it as a means of unveiling the holy.