Marilyn Monroe (Monroe) (F. & S. II.22): Screenprint on paper

  • Andy Warhol Marilyn F. & S. II.22 1967 screenprint orange face blue hair pink background Marilyn Monroe Pop Art print
    Marilyn Monroe (Monroe) (F. & S. II.22), 1967
    Screenprint on paper, 91.4 x 91.4 cm, edition of 250, signed in pencil and numbered on verso; some signed in pen or initialled and dated, plus 26 signed APs, lettered A–Z on verso
    Printer: Aetna Silkscreen Products, Inc., NY, Publisher: Factory Additions, NY
    © The Andy Warhol Foundation
    Back to: Marilyn Suite
     

    Andy Warhol’s Marilyn (F. & S. II.22) is one of ten iconic screenprints from the Marilyn Monroe, 1967, portfolio published by Factory Additions in New York. Based on a publicity photograph from the 1953 film Niagara, the composition isolates Marilyn Monroe’s face within a square format, transforming a film still into a bold, stylised Pop Art portrait. The work exemplifies Warhol’s use of silkscreen to transform mass-media imagery into a repeatable, highly recognisable icon.

     

    In Marilyn (F. & S. II.22), Monroe’s face is rendered in a warm, saturated orange/red, set against a vivid pink background. Her hair is defined in pale cream tones with deep blue shadows, creating a strong contrast that frames the face. Warhol accentuates her features with pink eyeshadow and sharply defined blue contours around the eyes and nose, while her lips are printed in deep blue with a bright yellow highlight that draws the viewer’s focus. The sharp contrasts compress the image into a flat surface, emphasising its deliberately manufactured quality. Monroe appears less as a lifelike figure and more as a visual symbol, aligning the work with Warhol’s broader focus on celebrity, repetition, and the mechanics of image production.

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  • "If you want to know all about Andy Warhol, just look at the surface of my paintings... There's nothing behind it."

     

    - Andy Warhol

    The historical context of Warhol’s focus on Marilyn Monroe, created shortly after her death at just thirty-six, is key to the series. Produced at a time when her image dominated mass media, the works capture the tension between celebrity glamour and personal vulnerability, with Warhol creating 32 paintings of Monroe in 1962 alone and returning to her throughout his career. Rather than reinforcing stereotypes from films such as Some Like It Hot and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, the screenprints maintain an ambiguous balance between allure and detachment, contributing to their enduring cultural significance and strong appeal among collectors.