Andy Warhol's Exposures

''Exposures'', also known as ''Andy Warhol's Exposures'', is a 1979 book by the American artist Andy Warhol and his collaborator Bob Colacello. The first edition of the book was published by Andy Warhol Books, an imprint of Grosset & Dunlap.

Background

Pop artist Andy Warhol was a photography enthusiast who famously carried around a Polaroid camera in the 1970s. He used Polaroids as the basis of his commissioned silkscreen portraits.

In 1976, Warhol and Bob Colacello, editor of Warhol's ''Interview'' magazine, both purchased a Minox 35EL camera while they were in Bonn. Considering the amount of traveling they did, Warhol suggested that they should do a photography book together with the photos they took at social events and business trips. Warhol liked how small and sleek the camera looked, comparing it to a "'spy' camera because it takes pictures without arousing the notice of the subject."

Photographer Christopher Makos was hired as the art director for the book to do the layout.

Content

The book contains over 250 previously unpublished photographs of Warhol's famous friends and anecdotes. The subjects include Mick Jagger, Bianca Jagger, Truman Capote, Jackie Onassis, Liza Minnelli, Halston, Calvin Klein, Muhammad Ali, Diana Vreeland, and Yves Saint Laurent among others. "I have a Social Disease. I have to go out every night," Warhol wrote as tells stories of his adventures. He told the ''Chicago Tribune'', "Most of the people we took are people we see all the time ... It's a business, but then you become best friends with some of them. I like everyone to be my best friend, but I try not to get too involved."

However, many of the stories in the book were Colacello's and he recalled in his book ''Holy Terror: Andy Warhol Up Close'' that this caused some resentment: "I hated the fact that I was ghostwriting again, that every time I typed 'I' it was Andy, not me. When I'd worked on the ''Philosophy'' book that had seemed liberating, but now it felt humiliating, especially since the stories 'I' was telling were mine, not Andy's. In some cases. I put Andy at scenes where only I had been. It was a form of lying of course, but there was no other way to write an Andy Warhol book, no more Warhol way."

Release

Warhol and Colacello formed a co-publishing company, Andy Warhol Books, which was marketed and distributed by Grosset & Dunlap. They received 50% of the profits and a $35,000 advance but they had to pay the production costs. Production took longer than anticipated and most of their advance was used to cover the expenses.

The book was released on October 15, 1979. The first print of 25,000 sold out within a week of publication. The book cost $25, but there were limited edition copies for $500 that included a silkscreen print signed by Warhol.

In November 1979, Warhol embarked on a 3-week book tour to promote ''Exposures''.

Reception

Paul Weingarten of the ''Chicago Tribune'' wrote: "The book is a paean to the 'glitterati' who flock to Studio 54 and all the chic watering holes. Its text is breathlessly gossipy, and its pictures, all black and white (he hasn't learned to take color ones yet), chronicle the antics of Warhol's acquaintances and friends."

William S. Murphy wrote for the ''Los Angeles Times'': "From a technical standpoint, the pictures in this volume are atrocious, which really enhances the book's charm. He lights each frame with a booming strobe flash in a style similar to the work of Arthur Fellig, best known as Weegee ... The text covering his nighttime adventures in Manhattan is superb. And one must credit his pictures for one quality. they are indeed candid."

Marian Christy of ''The'' ''Boston Globe'' praised Warhol's humor in the book, writing "Warhol has simply given humor a new style ... Pop art has become pop humor." "Andy Warhol even knows how to make fun of himself. He shared precious tidbits about his private terrors," she added.

References

{{reflist

1979 non-fiction books
Books by Andy Warhol
English-language non-fiction books