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Richard Prince, "Untitled (Hand with cigarette and watch)" (Rephotograph)
Cropping sections from photographs used in advertising, Richard Prince created his "rephotographs" (singular and collaged) as a means to highlight aspects of current societal attitudes and assumptions, such as the "masculine virility and power" evidenced in this work (Morgan 3).
Photo: [https://whitney.org/collection/works/40693]
Article: [https://hyperallergic.com/439334/the-decade-that-changed-the-art-world-money-media-and-brands-in-the-1980s/] -
E. Fay Jones, Thorncrown Chapel (Architecture)
Named the "1981 American Institute of Architects Design of the year," this wood and glass structure in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas offers visitors a respite among nature (architectsdigest.com). A life-long dream of Jim Reed, he and Jones worked on the design and building began in 1979.
Photo: [https://www.architecturaldigest.com/gallery/most-iconic-buildings-in-america]
Article: [https://thorncrown.com/aboutus.html] -
Raymond Carver, "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love" (Short Story Collection)
Carver's iconic collection of short stories explore themes related to divorce, sadness, disruption, and "thankless business of cadging income from small and unlikable jobs" that a decade of readers and beyond have related to (Temple).
Photo and Article: [https://lithub.com/a-century-of-reading-the-10-books-that-defined-the-1980s/] -
George Lucas, "Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark" (Film)
Proving Lucas' versatility in cinematographic writing, "Raider of the Lost Ark" launched an iconic film series that has lasted well into the 2000s. A history, fantasy, and action, all combine to create an experience that viewers are fully engaged in and remember long after they have watched the film.
Photo: [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082971/] -
Patrick Nagel, "Rio" Album Cover (Poster)
Nagel's images highlighted fashion and the femme fatal in the 1980s with a distinctive Japanese woodblock print influence. Triangle earrings, minimalistic lines, and bold colors combined to create an icon that is recognizable as distinctly Nagel.
Photo: [https://hepcatshaven.com/2015/07/07/the-pop-art-of-patrick-nagel/] -
Piet Blom, "Cube Houses in Rotterdam, Holland (Architecture)
Built between 1982 & 1984, the cube houses are an iconic statement in Rotterdam. Offering three floors of living space, the homes are tilted at a 45-degree angle, creating a walking bridge for local pedestrians. Designed on Blom's concept of "living as an urban roof," all homes are connected and contain windows on the various floors.
Photo and Article: [https://www.holland.com/global/tourism/destinations/rotterdam/rotterdam-cube-houses.htm] -
Prince, "1999" (Song, Music Video)
Hitting the charts in 1982, "1999," referred to the Cold War as it stood in 1982. Television and news networks were filled with the gloom and doom of the Cold War and "1999" represents Prince's optimism to live in the time one has regardless of what may or may not happen.
Photo: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1999_(Prince_album)] -
David Salle, "Brother Animal" (Mixed Media)
A mix of pop art, sketches, physical features attached to the canvas, and photo-like images, Salle's work has been described as an artist who lets his audience draw their own conclusions from his work.
Photo: [https://www.moca.org/collection/work/brother-animal]
Article: [https://www.theartstory.org/artist/salle-david/artworks/0 -
Michael Jackson, "Thriller" (Song/Music Video)
Michael Jackson was the King of Pop and the king of creating music videos that we wanted to dance to and sing. "Thriller," at 13:43 minutes long, features the voice talents of the iconic master of horror, Vincent Price, movie-worthy special effects, and a story that grabs the viewer's attention, Michael Jackson's music video was an MTV experience that is enjoyed to this day via YouTube and other online venues.
Photo: [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088263/?ref_=ttfc_fc_tt] -
Jean-Michel Basquiat "Warhol lifting dumbbells" (Painting)
A friend of the iconic Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and Warhol were often seen together collaborating on various artworks in Warhol's studio. According to Warhol's diary and photographs, Basquiat painted this portrait after a weight-lifting session in 1984. This portrait offers an alternate view of Warhol while illustrating the artistic talent that was Basquiat.
Photo and Article: [https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2019/07/andy-warhol-jean-michel-basquiat-friendship-book] -
The Year of the Yuppie (Fashion)
College-educated baby boomers with high-paying jobs and expensive tastes were the ideal of the 1980s. Demonstrating their materialistic concerns through their cars, houses, technological possessions, and fashion, the yuppies were the epitome of self-centeredness.
Photo: [https://www.revivalvintage.co.uk/blog/post/guide-to-vintage-1980s/] -
Band Aid, "Do They Know It's Christmas" (Song, Music Video)
Defining what it meant to give of yourself to others, "Do They Know It's Christmas," started out the 1984 holiday season by highlighting the issues of starvation in Ethiopia. Through the video playing on MTV, they created social awareness in Europe and America within weeks of the song's release.
Photo: [https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-making-of-band-aid-secrets-and-stories-from-the-star-studded-session-172815/] -
Rodney Greenblat, "The Something Palace" (Acrylic on Wood Sculpture)
Created in 1984, the whimsical colors and designs are indicative of the 1980s and its preoccupation with bright colors and cartoon-styled representations of people and animals. Greenblat is best known for his role as a computer games graphic artist in the United States and Japan.
Photo: [https://www.artsy.net/artwork/rodney-alan-greenblat-rodney-greenblat-original-painting-acrylic-on-wood-sculpture-signed-modern-art] -
Madonna, "Material Girl" (Song, Music Video)
Madonna's "Material Girl" described the 1980s obsession with wealth and the finer things in life. The song describes her life as it was at that moment and MTV played the video often, adding to sales and popularity.
Photo: [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6612364/] -
John Hughes, "The Breakfast Club" (Film)
An iconic film where 5 teens learn that appearances can be deceiving and that the best thing that you can be is yourself. Featuring the stereotypical nerd, recluse, rebel, jock, and pretty girl of high school in the 1980s, this film remains a favorite many decades after it opened in theatres due to its timeless themes.
Photo: [https://www.amazon.com/Breakfast-Club-Flashback-John-Bender/dp/B07P7J9THL] -
Madonna, 80s look (Fashion)
Madonna has been a trend-setter for most of her career. Her early 1980s style was an iconic blend of hair bows, bolero jackets over lacy tops, layered necklaces and bracelets, lace gloves, and skirts and pants with a lot of movement, that rebelled against the yuppie norm of the same decade. Many teenagers and young adults in the 1980s emulated her style, especially with regard to jewelry and hair accessories.
Photo: [https://www.vogue.co.uk/gallery/madonnas-style-evolution] -
Andy Warhol, "Endangered Species" Complete Portfolio (Sceenprint)
Saving endangered species was a hot topic in the 1980s, so it's no wonder that Andy Warhol was requested to create these screenprints in Warhol's iconic style. With a career spanning from the late 1950s to his death in 1987, Warhol created the genre of pop art wherein viewers were given cause to view mundane objects as they related to popular culture.
Photo: [https://revolverwarholgallery.com/portfolio/endangered-species-suite/]
Article: [https://revolverwarholgallery.com/about-andy-warhol/] -
Stephen King, "IT" (Horror Novel)
King's "IT" sent chills through a generation of readers for several reasons, but mostly it was the clown, Pennywise. Growing up too young to read "IT" in the 1980s, the iconic horrific clown, terrified us through pop culture references and made it difficult to read the book in the latter half of the 1990s. King is the master of horror, but no other book has had such a lasting effect as "IT" has.
Photo: [https://www.amazon.com/Stephen-King/dp/0670813028] -
Keith Haring, "Lucky Strike III" (Screenprint, Poster)
Starting his career in the subways and sidewalks of New York City, Haring was also recognized by Warhol and soon became friends with Grace Jones, Madonna, and many other iconic stars of the 1980s. His graffiti is recognizable by the large, fluid lines and bright colors that are used within his works. This poster was one of a set commissioned by the cigarette company, Lucky Strike.
Photo and Article: [https://www.artsy.net/artwork/keith-haring-lucky-strike-iii] -
Julian Schnabel, "Self-Portrait in Andy's Shadow" (Mixed Media)
Andy Warhol was a great influence among many artisans, and Julian Schnabel's self-portrait reflects this influence. Created using oil paints atop broken plates and crockery glued together on two wood panels using Bondo, Andy Warhol's name and date of death are featured along the right side and bottom of this massive piece (103x72x10").
Photo: [https://www.thebroad.org/art/julian-schnabel/self-portrait-andys-shadow]
Article: [https://source.wustl.edu/2003/12/american-art-of-the-1980s/] -
Arata Isozaki, Museum of Contemporary Art (Architechture)
"Japanese architect Arata Isozaki created a contrast to the extreme heights of the Bunker Hill glass-and-steel high rise towers by designing MOCA as a sunken, red sandstone-clad space" (L.A. Conservatory). Standing in juxtaposition to the skyscrapers around it, the museum is a mix of traditional East Asian architecture and abstract forms.
Photo & Article: [https://www.laconservancy.org/locations/museum-contemporary-art] -
Ronald Dahl, "Matilda" (Young Reader's Novel)
Dahl, who created the iconic, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" in the 1960s, did it again in the 1980s with Matilda. A story about terrible parents, a school run by an adult bully, a kind and caring teacher, and the discovery of magical power, "Matilda" is a heart-warming story of working to effect changes in one's life.
Photo and Article: [https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/188007/matilda--colour-edition-/9780141378541.html] -
Jeff Koons, "Michael Jackson and Bubbles" (Porcelain Sculpture)
Designed in a manner more appropriate for a gift shop or knick-knack collection, Koon's sculpture of Michael Jackson and his pet monkey, Bubbles, reflects the enjoyment we get from looking at, purchasing, and possessing these trinkets. Koon's reflection of nothing being taboo for his sculptures is iconic in his stainless steel balloon animals.
Photo: [https://www.thebroad.org/art/jeff-koons/michael-jackson-and-bubbles] -
Lisa Frank, "Playtime Kittens - Sunflower & Kaylen" (Airbrush print)
Lisa Frank's airbrushed iconic artwork revolutionized the sticker industry in the 1980s. Collecting, trading, and comparing stickers and other items branded by Lisa Frank was an experience that can not be easily forgotten. Using a unique ink blend that is still kept secret, Frank's unique style of realistic animals and settings in rainbow colors create a colorful world that is easily recognized.
Photo: [https://www.facebook.com/LisaFrankOfficial/photos/a.10150102197858845/10150215354153845] -
Dale Chihuly, "Three-Piece Amethyst Persian Set with Orange Lip Wrap" (Blown Glass)
Dale Chihuly is a revolutionary glassblowing artist. Creating designs that occupy interior and exterior spaces worldwide, Chihuly's creations are all one-of-a-kind creations that display the whimsy and freedom that his chosen medium offers.
Photo: [https://www.artsy.net/artwork/dale-chihuly-three-piece-amethyst-persian-set-with-orange-lip-wrap]