Artist's Assistant

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Artists assistants work with, and often under direct instruction from, artists in the production or preparation of art works. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] Many famous and influential artists have worked with assistants, including Barbara Hepworth, [6] David Hockney, [7] and Andy Warhol.

Contents

Famous assistants

While the names of many artists' assistants are never known, [ citation needed ] some artists assistants have become famous in their own right either as artists [8] [9] or for their role as assistants. [10] Italian artist Salaì was an assistant and pupil of the Italian Renaissance painter Leonardo da Vinci. American filmmaker and poet Gerard Malanga, [11] and artists Ronnie Cutrone and Rupert Jasen Smith were assistants of American pop artist Andy Warhol. [12] [13]

Controversy

The use of artists' assistants has been a controversial issue. The controversy primarily focuses on the assistants not being acknowledged for their work and questions of what constitutes art. [14] Pop artist David Hockney described Damian Hirst's use of assistants as, "It's a little insulting to craftsmen, skilful craftsmen." [15] This was in response to Hirst's use of assistants to paint his spot paintings. [16]

Warhol often used assistants to help with his silkscreen paintings at his studio, called the Factory. Warhol was asked why he used a mechanical device to reproduce designs. [17] "I tried doing them by hand," he admitted, "but I find it easier to use a screen. This way, I don't have to work on my objects at all. One of my assistants or anyone else, for that matter, can reproduce the design as well as I could." [17]

The contemporary artist Jeff Koons uses assistants in a similar way, "I'm basically the idea person," he told an interviewer, "I'm not physically involved in the production. I don't have the necessary abilities, so I go to the top people.” [18]

There have also been exhibitions about the relationship between artist and assistant such as that at the New York gallery Luxembourg & Dayan which hosted ‘In the Making: Artists, Assistants, and Influence’ – a show tracing the link between artists and their (eventually famous) assistants in 2016 [19]

References

  1. "ARTIST ASSISTANTS - The World Of Anonymous Helpers". Widewalls. Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  2. "What It's Really Like to Be an Artist Assistant". www.format.com. Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  3. "Artquest". Artquest. Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  4. "Art Demystified: Why Artists Use Studio Assistants". artnet News. 2016-07-14. Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  5. Beck, Graham T. (2008-02-06). "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Assistant". The Brooklyn Rail. Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  6. "'I know this sculpture well. It's an old friend' | Christie's". www.christies.com. Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  7. Bayley, Stephen (2013-03-19). "Like every great artist, David Hockney needs his circle". Daily Telegraph. ISSN   0307-1235 . Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  8. Jeffries, Stuart (2013-03-23). "The Chapman Brothers on life as artists' assistants: 'We did our daily penance'". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  9. "Titian, the renaissance master from Venice". Italian Renaissance Art.com. Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  10. AnOther (2016-07-13). "Five of the Most Influential Artists' Assistants". AnOther. Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  11. "Gerard Malanga's Journey From Andy Warhol's Stage Dancer To Factory Poet". HuffPost. 2010-08-04. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
  12. "Ronnie Cutrone, RIP". HuffPost. 2013-07-22. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
  13. "Young Artist for Warhol 'Living Life to the Hilt'". The Palm Beach Post. 1978-06-01. pp. C2. Retrieved 2024-04-22.
  14. Hafner, Hans-Jürgen (2015-11-18). "Trickier Affairs".
  15. "Hockney criticises Hirst method". 2012-01-03. Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  16. Singh, Anita (2012-01-12). "Damien Hirst: assistants make my spot paintings but my heart is in them all". Daily Telegraph. ISSN   0307-1235 . Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  17. 1 2 Rublowsky, John (1965). Pop Art. New York: Basic Books. p. 113. ISBN   978-0465060047.
  18. Powers, John (2012-08-17). "I Was Jeff Koons's Studio Serf". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-02-21.
  19. Magazine, Wallpaper* (2016-02-29). "Helping hand: Luxembourg & Dayan explores the role of the artist's assistant". Wallpaper*. Retrieved 2019-02-21.