As an artist, Andy Warhol perfected the persona of the apathetic slacker to a tee. During a moment when a new generation of postwar American artists sought to counter the individuated and elitist "high art" discourse around abstract expressionism, Warhol adopted the stance of refusing to comment directly upon his pop art and allowing its intended and strategic superficiality to speak and operate for itself. After showing the following clip of Warhol responding to questions about his work in tones of banal indifference in a lecture yesterday, I was sent a video clip of Lou Reed (lead singer of The Velvet Underground, a band promoted heavily by Warhol in the early 1960's) doing essentially the same sort of thing exactly ten years later. Thanks Will for pointing out the fascinating comparison-- it is truly uncanny!
