The pop art is one of the most studied neo avant-garde movements of the second half of the 20th century. His baptism certificate was in England, although he would soon jump to the United States where he found the last of his shoe. And it is the Americans, with that aesthetic of indifference, who develop it best. D. from the University of Salamanca Marta Castanedo published in 2021 an interesting study on pop culture under the title ‘Death, disaster and accident. Andy Warhol and the end of the American dream’. This work was also recognized with the national award of the Spanish Society of Aesthetics and Theory of the Arts for best publication. In his study, Castanedo defends how pop has left a great influence on the other arts, but also on society. A legacy that is still very much alive today. And the fact is that his imprint is enormous in the culture. Popular images together with devalued techniques is his formula. The work of this teacher becomes our starting point.
Pop Art: From the Old World to the Land of Opportunity
But let’s start at the beginning. In the 1920s the Spanish philosopher Ortega y Gasset wrote ‘The Revolt of the Masses’. Gasset claimed that an enlightened minority could begin to enjoy elements or traits of the privileged classes in order to obtain social power. This mass-minority duality became the center of the debate. Almost 30 years later, the English art critic Lawrence Alloway echoed these ideas to elaborate the foundational text of pop art. However, far from defending an elitist culture, Alloway prefers to look at the taste of the masses.
This critic was giving voice to a group of artists who in the 1950s were advocating a new language. They were, among others, Richard Hamilton, Eduardo Paolozzi and Alloway himself. An exclusive group of artists, critics or architects eager to subvert the system. They were tired of abstract rhetoric. As Professor Castanedo states, these pioneering artists dissect the products of mass culture from which they take many of their references. Be it movies, comics or music, mainly. One of his main concerns is the relationship between art and technology.
This Is Tomorrow: the dawn of Pop Art
In 1956 the Whitechapel gallery hosted the exhibition “This is tomorrow” which has been taken as the starting point of pop art. The common thread of the exhibition was modern life. His presentation was also a statement of intent. The artists were divided into twelve groups. The gallery was filled with installations and the pieces vied with each other to capture the viewer’s attention. It was an interactive exhibition that viewers at the time were not at all accustomed to. One of the proposals was a catastrophic vision of what would be left of a single war. Others, on the other hand, had to defend an idea of Eden. The famous collage that Richard Hamilton created as an exhibition poster is one of the first pop art collages of the movement. While Adam is a bodybuilder who brazenly shows us his muscles, Eve has transformed herself into a pin-up. The word POP can be read on the lollipop worn by this sort of modern Adam. This poster shows all the elements of an exuberance-loving post-war society where the cult of beauty, strength and sex predominates. Sound familiar? Pure chance. This poster tells us about the future that was coming. A consumer society that in America was a reality, but in the Europe of the 1950s was just that, a dream. The most urgent task was to rebuild the devastated cities and feed the population.
From the prudence of British pop art to American boldness
Although England is the cradle of pop, British artists did not dare to take the postulates of this new language to the limit. In contrast to their prudence, the Americans did take the definitive step. Paris had lost the artistic capital it had long enjoyed. The end of the war had changed the map and the USA emerged with force. It was the 1960s and New York assumed this cultural leadership. Pop is transformed by contact with this middle class.
In the field of the arts, the characteristics of American pop art are somewhat different from those of English pop art. What matters here is the what and the how. The answer to the first question is the object of consumption or referents of popular culture. A popular iconography of purely industrial origin that is reflected in pop art paintings. About how we have to discover a style that is also based on the vocabulary of mass production. Substance and form become autonomous.
Andy Warhol: from commercial designer to pop art icon
Let’s keep in mind that many American artists come from the world of commercial design and advertising. This is the case of Andy Warhol whose dream and aspiration was always to become a pop art artist. And so he did. He went from designer to creator. His appropriation of idols such as Elvis, Marilyn Monroe or Jackie Kennedy are among the most famous works of the 20th century.
“In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” – Andy Warhol
To understand what pop art is and to what extent his legacy is still present in our daily lives, we must recognize his traits. On the one hand, that pure style, free of gesture, where there is no brushstroke. In contrast to other movements such as Expressionism, pop art attempts to hide the artist’s hand. His language is clear and direct. We could even say mechanical (in the sense of anti-artistic). Its goal is to represent American society. Often he is branded as cold. The idea of repetition often appears in pop music, alluding to an assembly line that annuls the individual. After all, any worker can be replaced. This mimicry with industrialization and commercialization, as in advertising, is one of its most recognizable marks. In short, commercial images, replacement of artistic techniques by commercial techniques and the use of industrial materials.
Pop Art as a precursor of postmodernity
The American popular classes never understood abstract expressionism, a style that was already genuinely American, without being indebted to old Europe. However, pop was by no means a style of so-called popular taste. Rather, it soon became a legitimate and avant-garde art. It just borrowed its icons from popular culture. After all, pop is legible, understandable, it breaks the myth of the aligned artist and, above all, it is an accomplice art. The recovery of figuration based on everyday elements is his best ally.
The Aesthetics of Indifference in Pop Art
There is an idea on which Professor Castanedo dwells that seems to me to be very accurate. She argues that pop art does not want to resemble real life, but wants to resemble the idea or model of life conveyed by marketing or the advertising world. Let’s remember the works of Roy Lichtenstein and how he drinks from comic strips in a distant and impersonal, dispassionate way. This idea of impersonality can be found in many American artists, but not in English artists.
American pop art is neither a satire of consumer society nor a defense or acceptance of it. According to Marta Castanedo’s hypothesis, pop is limited to recording reality without passing judgment. Hence, he coined the phrase aesthetics of indifference. Following his speech, that would be the answer to why he is still so influential today. In that very paradox of criticism or acceptance lies its success. In pop there are no answers, there is silence. Artists no longer say anything, now it is the spectator who gives one meaning or another.
Other authors defend that in a certain way pop is a precursor of postmodernity, by introducing banality in art. Until then, art was something tremendously serious. A provocation that we continue to see in many of today’s artistic proposals.
Why Maseda goes beyond the superficiality of Pop Art
Maseda finds in Pop Art a source of inspiration, but his work goes much further than Pop Art. his work goes much further. Although he draws on some characteristic elements of Pop Art, such as the use of bright colors like his characteristic fluorine and the representation of recognizable figures, Maseda clearly dissociates himself from this movement. His art is rooted in a deep emotional exploration and a raw representation of human vulnerability, aspects that distance it from the banality or indifference that defines Pop Art. Maseda uses a gestural brushstroke that contrasts with Pop Art, which hides the artist’s hand. Maseda delights in the gesture, emphasizing his personal connection to each work.
Maseda uses a palette of black and white with touches of fluor pink that has become his trademark. Unlike Pop Art, which tends to avoid personal expression and the artist’s hand, Maseda immerses himself in the exploration of the darkest corners of the human soul. His portraits, charged with intense emotional expression, seek to connect directly with the viewer, revealing the fragility and inner struggles of his subjects.
While Pop Art celebrates and criticizes consumer culture through repetition and popular iconography, Maseda focuses on individuality and introspection. His works, although they include recognizable figures, do not seek to replicate the superficiality of popular culture, but rather to delve into the human psyche. This differentiation is crucial to understand its place in contemporary art.
A notable example of this distinction is his collection “El Club de los 27”, where Maseda portrays iconic musicians who passed away at the age of 27. This series not only highlights the notoriety of these figures, similar to Pop Art’s approach to celebrities, but also explores their personal struggles and the torment they faced. Each portrait in this collection is a window into the fragility and complexity of these artists, addressing themes of pain, vulnerability and the ephemeral nature of success and fame.
In conclusion, although Maseda finds in Pop Art an undeniable influence, his work is distinguished by its introspective and emotional approach. The legacy of Pop Art can be seen in his use of iconography and color, but Maseda transcends these influences by creating art that is not only seen, but felt. His work, with its unique combination of technique and emotion, redefines how urban art can explore and express the human condition, with collections such as “The 27 Club” underscoring his commitment to showcasing the complexity and depth of his subjects.
Comisaria independiente, crítica de arte y profesora en la Universitat Jaume I de Castelló. Compagina la docencia e investigación en el campo de las artes con el periodismo cultural a través de colaboraciones con medios como la SER o el periódico El Mundo.
