Wednesday, November 25, 1998
Hop on Pop
ART:Like an Andy Warhol for the ’90s, artist Burton Morris
infuses today’s cultural images with commercial appealBy Katherine
Kelly
Daily Bruin Contributor
The three-dimensional painting, "American Pop," explodes in
front of the viewer. It is the symbol of what artist Burton Morris
is trying to do to pop art in the 1990s. Keeping pace with the
technology and fast-moving bodies around him, Morris is creating a
new genre of art called "New Pop Art."
"We are calling this new pop art, rather than the typical pop
art," Morris says. "It is like pop art with a contemporary
twist."
This allows Morris to define the 1990s without being directly
associated with older pop artists and making it quite clear that
the purpose of pop art is to portray an era.
Morris’s artwork is currently on display at the Wolfryd-Selway
Fine Art gallery through Dec. 12. The exhibit encompasses many
famous pieces, such as the steaming coffee cup from NBC’s
"Friends."
With images as recognizable as this, he is having quite an
impact on American culture.
David Galgano, co-owner of The Wolfryd-Selway art gallery,
compares him to another famous artist saying, "What Andy Warhol did
in the 1960s, Morris is doing in the 1990s  basically
freezing icons of our time that are meaningful."
This is evident from stepping into the gallery, where many of
his paintings seem disturbingly familiar and for good reason. Along
with the "Friends" coffee mug are such pieces as the gumball
machine entitled, "Penny a Pop," "Exploding Toaster" and "American
Pop," which is a red, white and blue popcorn box.
Another aspect of his success and recognizability is because of
his corporate appeal. Companies such as American Express, Honda,
McDonald’s, Microsoft, Sony and Warner Brothers are among his
clients. This broadens the scope of Morris’ work from traditional
art to commercial art as well.
Morris agrees that his success is "constant marketing, half
luck, half where you are and who buys your work. Building your name
and getting your work out there for people to see is also
essential."
This artist has no qualms; he feels no sorrow that his success
is based largely on his marketability. His success and
marketability are only a reflection of what his art and the 1990s
symbolize.
The familiarity of Morris is a large part of his attraction,
says Galgano. "It has a certain appeal because it is the here and
now. People can really identify with the artwork."
Phil Selway, co-owner of the Wolfryd-Selway Fine Arts, says, "It
is very impressive that he has been able to capture so many
different types of imagery. I think the next step for him will be
that he will become a very well-known name."
As time changes, so does people’s perspective of society. As
Warhol documented the 1960s with famous works such as "Campbell
Soup Cans" and Keith Haring documented the AIDS strife of the
1980s, Morris is documenting the 1990s obsession with materialism
and possessions.
American worship of money and possessions is no better displayed
than in a three-painting series called, "Herd on the Street." The
pieces depict "The Bull," "The Bear" and "The Buck." The vivid
series portrays a bull charging and blowing steam out of his nose;
"The Bear" big-clawed and bearing his teeth at the viewer; and "The
Buck" with a bright yellow background. Red and green dollar signs
seeming to almost to pop off the page, tempting the viewer.
With the success of his paintings, Morris has been offered some
very lucrative assignments. Most recently, he was the official
artist of the 1998 World Cup Soccer games. And, in the future, he
will be taking on the daunting project of being the official artist
of the upcoming Winter and Summer Olympics.
In the meantime, Morris plans to view videotapes of past
Olympics "to generate ideas," a departure from his usual methods of
inspiration.
"Usually, I use everyday inspiration all over  everything
around us," Morris says.
In addition to the projects that Morris has been hired to do, he
says, "What I am trying to do is to constantly be designing and
creating, building up my name. As I keep progressing, I want to see
my artwork in many forms, mediums and sizes."
By continuing to develop his art, Morris says, "I hope I move
into other mediums  more retail, larger canvases, murals,
eventually working towards sculpting."
As an artist, Morris seems to be destined for longevity because
of his commercial demand and his desire to grow. He wants to make
sure, however, that his art is not lost in commercialism. In
keeping this perspective, Morris is likely to make his name one
that is remembered for his paintings of the 1990s, much like Haring
defined the 1980s and Warhol defined the 1960s.
ART: Burton Morris’s "American Pop" is on display at the
Wolfryd-Selway Fine Art Gallery on Melrose Drive through Dec. 12.
For information call (310) 657-1711. MANDY SIU
Artist Burton Morris presents a piece entitled "Buy Low/Sell
High," one of his works now on exhibit.
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