14.8.09

Andy Warhol Eats a Hamburger



So. . .
You just watched Andy Warhol eat a hamburger. Maybe you're wondering what it's all about. It seems simple enough, just Andy in a green room munching his lunch, but he's famous. Maybe in this case, he does something interesting.
So you watch as he opens the bag, pulls out the burger and unwraps it. No fries. The burger could be from anywhere.
He dabs ketchup on the side and dips the burger into the ketchup instead of laying it on top, even though he pulled off the top bun. What?
Now you're curious, is he gonna do anything more? So for the next three minutes as he chews and chews, you're mind is racing. You're wondering, what the hell is Andy Warhol thinking? He stares off into the middle-distance, chomp-chomping away and he doesn't look bored or happy or sad or even hungry. He is the epitome of emotionlessness.
Suspense builds in your head like a pot boiling over. You're still trying to figure this out. He pulls the hamburger apart and doesn't even finish it! What the hell? He wraps the mess back up and stows it back in the sack, sets it aside, then twiddles his thumbs. He looks lost, glancing around, nearly paranoid, and his mouth is half open, like he's gonna say something.
Now the suspense is killing you! Is he gonna explain this all away? Is he? He opens his mouth . . . and closes it. . . and opens it again! He does this for nearly a minute!
And it's the longest minute of your life. Longer than that moment you almost drowned. Longer than that moment you were fired for stealing from your job. Longer than the minute you first inhaled.

Suddenly! It zooms in on Andy's face and he says,

"Um, my name is Andy Warhol and uh, I just finished eating a uh, hamburger."

That's it.
That's it. It's perfect.
It bars no explanation. It needs none. But for those of you confused, or unsatisfied, think of it this way:
It's either the greatest joke ever told or a masterpiece of the simplest things in life. Perhaps it's something sexual.
But I think Andy is mocking his own celebrity status. Of all the artists in history, Andy Warhol is probably the only artist more well-known than his art. And his art is simple, commonplace objects turned upside down. By videotaping an act so simple that no one values, Andy is saying, why does anyone value me?
It's the most self-loathing, despairing video I have probably ever seen. And I hope you understand it like I do, because it truly is great.

21 comments:

Dany said...

I am writing an essay based on a performance piece inspired by this very same video. The more i think of the analogies of the apathy of his attitude and modern life the more i like it. Yum!

Anonymous said...

love your response to this piece. you totally nailed it. this is the first work by andy warhol that i can admit to admiring, and my admiration is not inconsistent with my feeling about andy. it's a white light andy experience. i still honestly loathe his oeuvre, but blammo, i can say the man had something going on. you're good at this

Nicolás said...

Great man! I am from argentina i ended up reading this. awesome stuff!

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Anonymous said...

Is this in an art collection or museum?

Unknown said...

Andy Warhol depicts the mundane activities and items we use on a day to day basis. This piece he made is just the same as his paintings. He makes eating a hamburger art. Many question how this is art. Maybe the fact that eating a hamburger is art, then everything is art. Everything we do has some sort of art aspect to it.

Anonymous said...

This is part of a movie made back in 1982 called "66 scenes from America". It was filmed by a director from Denmark named Jorgen Leth.

Anonymous said...

Are you guys INSANE!, the video and the artist is simple RUBBISH. Andy was simply obsessed with filming self, the video has nothing.

Anonymous said...

What? Is this not pointless? Dishes Shtupid.

Anonymous said...

This is garbage made by a try-hard who can't make art but wants all the attention of a celebrity.

Anonymous said...

TRASH

Anonymous said...

Wow this guy. Andy Warhol I'm proud of you. I now how to eat a burger.

Anonymous said...

I'd rather not have seen this. It is a concept that can be visualized without having been recorded. The fact that it was released as art is an embarrassment.

Anonymous said...

What does he want a medal? He ate a freakin Hamburger. Get outta here!

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Anonymous said...

Are you guys INSANE!, the video and the artist is simple RUBBISH. Andy was simply obsessed with filming self, the video has nothing.

Anonymous said...

Thats not art! That lunch break! Turn off the camera!

Anonymous said...

Thats not art! That lunch break! Turn off the camera!

Unknown said...

You have some interesting thoughts, but this video isn't Andy Warhol's work, it's made by a Danish film director and poet, Jorgen Leth, and it's only one scene from a short film called "66 scenes from America". P.S.: The camera doesn't zoom in in the original video.

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