Who Gave Pop Art Its Name?

Art|Pop Art

Pop art is a visual art movement that emerged in the mid-1950s in Britain and the United States. It was a reaction to the seriousness of Abstract Expressionism and was characterized by a use of bold colors, geometric shapes, and commercial imagery. Pop art quickly gained popularity with the public, as it provided an accessible means for people to access art without having to understand abstract concepts.

Pop art has been credited with popularizing many aspects of modern culture including advertising, television, comics, and consumer products. It is also credited with introducing a new way of looking at everyday objects and transforming them into works of art. While there are many famous pop artists who have contributed to the movement such as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, David Hockney, and Richard Hamilton, there is one person who is often overlooked as the one who gave pop art its name: British critic and curator Lawrence Alloway.

Alloway was an influential figure in the emergence of Pop Art. He coined the term “Pop Art” in 1955 while writing for Architectural Design magazine in which he described it as “popular mass culture drawn from American sources”.

His definition included all aspects of popular culture such as advertising, television, movies and music. He argued that Pop Art was not just about representing commercial items but about using them to create something new.

Alloway continued to promote Pop Art throughout his career. He organized numerous exhibitions that showcased pop artists from around the world including Warhol’s iconic Campbell’s Soup Cans painting series. He also wrote extensively about pop art in journals and books that helped spread its influence across Europe.

In conclusion, Lawrence Alloway can be credited for giving Pop Art its name through his writings about popular mass culture in 1955. His contributions to promoting Pop Art helped make it popular worldwide by organizing exhibitions and writing extensively about it.