WHAT?  Andy Warhol Beyond the Brand 

WHERE? Halcyon Gallery, 148 and 29 New Bond Street, Mayfair, London, W1S 2RL

WHEN? Now until 24th March.  Free to visit 

WHY GO? To contemplate the power of commercial art.  Just when you thought you knew everything there was to know about Andy Warhol, up pops another exhibition to prove yet again that he was the agent provocateur for capturing the mood of an era. 

Renowned for appropriating iconic brands and catapulting them into global consciousness for posterity, think of Campbell’s Soup and Coca-Cola.

This sleek gallery across two sites is also renowned for representing the best of the best in cool contemporary art and shines the spotlight on Warhol’s commercial hits, from the beginning to the end of his career. 

Indeed, a painting for Swiss watch brand Rado is especially significant, since it was Warhol’s last commercial commission before he died in 1987.

Focusing primarily on Warhol’s Ads series of 1985, his personal take on 10 icons that represented the American dream from Apple Macintosh to James Dean, the exhibition celebrates his life as a commercial artist and includes fascinating clips, photos and news bulletins of those times.  It symbolically illustrates how popular commercial art can be elevated into fine art!

IN THE KNOW  From the Fifties to the Eighties, Warhol blurred the boundaries of commercial art, inspiring a tribe of followers including Keith Haring with his eclectic Pop Shop.  Haring’s playful Andy Mouse portfolio is also on show in the gallery’s immersive room. 

It humorously portrays Warhol as Mickey Mouse swimming in dollar bills and dancing in a night club. A cheeky finale to a great exhibition.