Activity 2.2- The Artworld

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Andy Warhol, Del Monte Peach Halves Box, 1964

Pop Art wanted to make viewers question the traditional concepts of high art by incorporating mass produced commercialized images into fine art. By drawing inspiration from popular culture and commercialism, Pop artists challenged the established norms in the art world.

Arthur Danto, seeing art like Roy Lichtenstein’s The Kiss and Andy Warhol’s Brillo Boxes, developed his theory that recognizing something as art requires more than just seeing it. According to Danto, for an object to become art it has to fit within a framework of theory and historical understanding. These works are art because they have an audience who understands them and is capable of interpreting them to be art.

In a 2006 podcast interview, Danto stated, “To see something as art one had to know something about the recent theory and history of art. Warhol’s box seemed to me enfranchised by the theory and history of Pop, which excluded Harvey’s boxes except as subject matter.” He also argued that because Warhol had already established himself as a Pop artist, his Brillo Boxes had a place in art history.

Status and intention seem to be prominent questions that arise when trying to explain why we consider some things art and others not. When looking at other works by Warhol around the same time, his Del Monte Peach Halves Box, made in 1964, comes to mind. While it takes talent to produce these sculptures, one has to wonder, if it was not produced with the name Andy Warhol attached to it, would it have been considered art?

In other pieces, Warhol alters the image by saturating it with color or repeating them multiple times, as seen in his Marilyn or Mao series. Why did he choose to alter some and leave others, like the Del Monte Peach Halves Box in its original form remains a question.

Regardless of the debates, Warhol’s legacy will have a place in history as a boundary-pushing, thought-provoking artist is secure. His work, as well as the other Pop Artists, will continue to be a foundation for artists to come and challenge the assumptions of what art can be.


Andy Warhol, Mao Series, 1967


 

 

Sources

Cosmopolitan Culture. (2025, September 30). Contested Territories: Arthur Danto & The Origins of the Art World. https://www.cosmopolitanculture.org/2025/09/30/contested-territories-arthur-danto-the-origins-of-the-art-world/

Danto, Arthur. The Artworld. The Journal of Philosophy. 1964.

Doyle, J. (2023) Week 2- Plato, Aristotle, Warhol. Art Theory and Criticism.

Freeland, C. (2023) Art Theory: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press. 

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