Andy Warhol’s 15 minutes of fame never ends, even beyond the grave. Today would have been the iconic Pop artist’s 85th birthday and, similar to his film Empire, the Andy Warhol Museum has a camera trained on his gravesite all day.
The museum teamed up with EarthCam, which flipped on a camera at midnight Monday. Fans can be seen leaving flowers and balloons at the grave at the St. John Chrysostom Byzantine Catholic Church in Pittsburgh.
According to the Associated Press, the museum has called the project “Fragment” after one of WArhol’s other famous quotes. “I always thought I'd like my own tombstone to be blank. No epitaph and no name. Well, actually, I'd like it to say, 'Figment,’” Warhol had said.
Museum director Eric Shiner told the AP that the camera “would be a really fantastic way to put Andy on the air 24/7 and plug in to our global audience.” He added, “We believe that this will give Warhol the pleasure of knowing that he is still plugged in and turned on over 25 years after his death.”
Warhol died in 1987, leaving behind one of the most well-known bodies of art and film. As the NY Times notes, the camera idea does recall the 1964 film Empire, which is eight hours of the Empire State Building at night.
People visit his grave year-round, leaving behind Campbell's Soup Cans and Coca Cola bottles, everyday items Warhol immortalized in art.
image: Wikimedia Commons
