Andy Warhol: Making Money

by Berkeley Reinhold (Preface), Vincent Fremont (Contribution by), Debbie Harry (Contribution by)

A whimsically designed facsimile of a unique book of drawings made by Andy Warhol that celebrates the dollar sign as lingua franca. Few artists made money their concern as openly as Andy Warhol. He made many pronouncements on his fascination with the dollar ("Big-time art is big-time money"), both as a symbol and as something he cherished, and so it was only natural that the dollar sign itself, one of the most recognized symbols anywhere in the world, that international denominator of currency, should enter the Pop art pantheon. Created in 1981 as a Christmas gift for Berkeley Reinhold, the cousin of the visionary curator and critic Henry Geldzahler and the daughter of one of Warhol’s closest friends, this book begins with simple outlines and curves, and builds, with a flipbook-like genesis, from unique abstract drawings to recognizable images of the artist’s inimitable dollar sign. Lighthearted, but with a hint of serious intent, it is an astute expression of how Warhol reveled in the vicissitudes of art and commerce, fortune and circumstance.

Genres: Art

80 pages, Hardcover

First published September 28, 2010

Reviews

[Corinne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the children's book like form of Making Money as it suited the intent of Warhol's dollar sign sketches for Berkeley Reinhold. The write-ups regarding the nature of the book and the Warhol-rendered dollar sign are expressive and succinct, and Reinhold's recounting of her relationship with Andy read like a journal which was absolutely lovely. Though I wish there had been more visual documentation/photographs to stand alongside the array of dollar sign sketches as the book had slightly the same appeal as the intimacy of sharing a secret with a childhood friend.

If you're looking for an introduction to Warhol's oeuvre, perhaps this isn't the best book to seek as it's one that assumes the reader is familiar with the overarching project of his artworks (or his philosophy i.e. his book The Philosophy of Andy Warhol). If one hordes Warhol books (like myself), then this book is a must have for that shelf as it's a wonderful documentation of the process that belies Warhol's works which we may fancy ourselves as familiar with. Overall, I'd give the book a 3.8 rating.

[Blog on Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

If there was ever an artist that epitomized the commercial aspect of modern art it would clearly be Andy Warhol. It was, after all, Warhol who came to fame by creating a virtual panoply of objets d’art out of consumer staples like the Campbell’s soup can(s), Brillo Boxes and stacks of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes packages stacked sky high.

In his pursuit of fame, money and found images, what could be more central to his theme of commerce than the dollar symbol itself? Apparently, the folks at Skira/Rizzoli thought the same thing as they have dedicated an entire book (albeit a small one) to the origination and creation of the famed Warhol dollar sign.

Much like the sketch books of well known contemporaries (Oldenberg was famous for his), “Making Money” disassembles the configurations that led up to the iconic figure in a basic, almost flip-book style. The original drawings were a gift to a young Berkeley Reinhold, who was Andy’s “window into the younger generation,” as Deborah Harry explains within Reinhold’s preface to this work today. The simplicity of the book (and its diminutive size) make it obvious as a gift item or stocking stuffer for the aesthetic capitalist on your holiday list as well. (And at $20, it’s a lot more of a bargain than the nearly $4 million an actual Warhol dollar sign painting has been known to fetch!)

For our New York readers, there will be a reception and book signing at the Gagosian on Madison (980 Madison Avenue, N.Y.) on Wednesday, September 29th, from 6:00 to 8:00pm.