Marilyn Monroe (Monroe) (F. & S. II.25): Screenprint by Andy Warhol

  • Andy Warhol Marilyn F. & S. II.25 1967 screenprint green face yellow and red hair Pop Art print Marilyn Monroe
    Marilyn Monroe (Monroe) (F. & S. II.25), 1967
    Screenprint on paper, 91.4 x 91.4 cm, 250 signed in pencil and numbered with a rubber stamp on verso, plus 26 signed AP and lettered A-Z on verso
    Printer: Aetna Silkscreen Products, Inc., NY, Publisher: Factory Additions, NY
    © The Andy Warhol Foundation
    BACK TO: Marilyn Suite
     

    In Marilyn (F. & S. II.25), Marilyn Monroe’s face is rendered in a vivid green, set against a soft green background that creates a unified, almost tonal field. Her platinum-blonde hair appears in bright yellow with red overlays, framing the face, while her features are defined through contrasts. The eyes are softened with pale green shadow, while the lips combine electric blue with deep red accents, creating a striking focal point. These exaggerated cosmetic colours emphasise the stylised, constructed nature of the image, echoing and amplifying the visual language of studio makeup and publicity photography.

     

    Marilyn (F. & S. II.25) forms part of the Marilyn Monroe, 1967, portfolio, published by Factory Additions, New York City. Created shortly after Monroe’s death in 1962, the series draws on a publicity still from the 1953 film Niagara, preserving her image at the height of her fame. Although Warhol never met Monroe, her death had a lasting impact on his work, leading him to revisit her image repeatedly as a way of exploring celebrity, media, and the power of mass-produced imagery.

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  • "When Marilyn Monroe happened to die that month, I got the idea to make screens of her beautiful face — the first Marilyns."

    - Andy Warhol

    In Marilyn (F. & S. II.25), the shift from photograph to silkscreen introduces a process of visual reduction, replacing fine detail with simplified outlines and flat areas of colour. This approach is central to Warhol’s early 1960s work, seen across portraits of figures such as Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Elvis Presley, as well as the Disaster series. Despite their contrasting subjects, Warhol applied the same methods of silkscreen transfer and repetition, unifying themes of celebrity, media, and mass production.