Trophy Lives: On the Celebrity as an Art Object

by Philippa Snow

We know that celebrities can make great think of the work of Richard Phillips, who has painted an entire series of works inspired by Lindsay Lohan, Robert Pattinson, and Miley Cyrus, or of Urs Fischer, who recently showed a life-sized candle in the shape of Leonardo DiCaprio. Notoriously, the art collector Peter Brant commissioned the wickedly satirical Italian American artist Maurizio Cattelan to make a sculpture of his wife, the supermodel Stephanie Seymour. The work was technically called Stephanie, but became known in the industry as ‘Trophy Wife’. With the sculpture valued at 1.5 million dollars, while Seymour herself is purportedly worth one hundred million dollars, you might be tempted to wonder which has the claim to be the ‘better’ work of art.

In this illustrated essay, critic Philippa Snow asks whether all great, or iconic, celebrities can be considered technically self-authored artworks in and of themselves. Drawing on a wide range of cultural references from the past two decades, she proposes that increasingly – as celebrities’ private lives become more visible and thus more art-directed, and especially as plastic surgery becomes de rigueur for even the most minor public figures – celebrity itself can be a medium for contemporary art, a form of mythmaking and image-making that is every bit as complex, conceptual, and compelling as the work of a traditional artist.

Genres: Nonfiction, Art, Pop Culture

Kindle Edition

Published March 25, 2024

Reviews

[Blair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trophy Lives is a short book, really an essay in two parts. In the first, Snow talks about the celebrity as muse and representations of celebrity in art; in the second, she makes the case for the celebrity as art. I love Snow’s writing, she constructs perfect sentences and expresses ideas very incisively, so I really enjoyed reading this, even if it is a little insubstantial as a book. The idea that a celebrity’s image and physical appearance (including the ways in which it might have been altered by plastic surgeons) might constitute ‘a bona fide work of art’, while obviously interesting, warrants a deeper dive. The argument is easy – it makes perfect sense to describe a celebrity’s projected image as performance art; the implications are thornier. Snow does talk about the relationship between person(a)-as-art and notions of conventional beauty, of course, but I think there’s much more to say. Happily, during the course of reading this I discovered that Snow has a full-length book about celebrity and femininity – It’s Terrible the Things I Have to Do to Be Me – coming out in July; straight onto my wishlist.

[Baiba · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading Trophy Lives by Philippa Snow. What I liked most was the way she writes about celebrity as both art and performance — and how perfection itself becomes part of the image.

I also loved learning about artists and pop culture moments I didn’t know much about before, like ORLAN or Marina Abramović appearing in a Jay-Z music video. And I honestly had no idea that Kim Kardashian released a coffee table book made up of selfies.

The book made me think more about how celebrities create themselves almost like artworks, and how we consume those images. It felt smart without being difficult to read, which I appreciated a lot.

[Jack Skelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Author, based in London, recently flew to Los Angeles to join a talk at Jeffrey Deitch gallery with artist Sam McKinniss. The artist's portrait of Whitney Houston features on the cover of the U.S. edition of this book. The talk accented the gallery's groundbreaking "Post Human" group show. Here is my review of the event (and exhibit) in Los Angeles Review of Books: "Cyber Celebrity Skin
Jack Skelley reports from a star-struck showcase of cyborg feminists, futuristic fetishists, and booty mutants: Jeffrey Deitch’s “Post Human” revival." https://lareviewofbooks.org/short-tak...

[Olly Teare · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cracking read and really good angle. Bloody well researched and all examples felt nicely picked for the flow.

I love a good swear word but the use of them feels weirdly forced, dropping the C bomb early doors in a context where no one really uses that word - performative swearing , if you will. Other than that I think it was well written and a really fun take on pop culture and parasocial relationships.

[apryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

four stars because i wish it had been 100 pages longer (she’s so good)

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

snow never misses

[Stella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dense but juicy.
Snow offered some wonderful perspectives on fame, self marketing and perception. If Kim Kardashian’s existence can be considered art, then so is mine!

[Oda · Rating 4 out of 5]

"We either die of the past or we become an artist." - Louise Bourgeois

[Rome · Rating 4 out of 5]

I cannot get enough of Philippa Snow. Wish it was longer

[Jasmin Ozolins · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ve realised how easily I’m swayed by reviews , often conflating my ratings based on the majority. Trying to change that.

This is book was flat and fastidious.

[Amr Jal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Essay length book about celebrity in art and celebrity as art and the implications of both. The author an interesting case for both but the conclusion isnt there because of the length of the book, with the end result being flimsy and insubstantial. The author is able to express ideas clearly and incisively, very glad she will be able to tackle this idea in a full length book coming out next summer, for that I’d say wait for the book.

[Sharon L Bruck · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

The first section was my favorite. Some arguments/ perspectives later on felt contrived, and while it’s written so well there were a few too many unnecessary adjectives in there for me that made sentences drag on and made the point less poignant lol.
But overall such an interesting and relevant take on celebrity nature/culture