Countdown to Andy’s 85th Birthday: Andy in Fashion

In 1949, before Andy Warhol began his endeavor into art superstardom, he moved to New York with the hopes of pursuing a career in illustration. Two years later, Harper’s Bazaar hired him as a freelance illustrator, and shortly thereafter, Warhol’s illustration of “Spa Shoes” made it into the May issue of the fashion magazine. Reminiscing back to his early career, Warhol once said, “I’m doing shoes because I’m going back to my roots. In fact, I think maybe I should do nothing but shoes from now on”.

But shoes weren’t the only thing Andy designed. In 1965 he took his famous soup can prints and made a paper dress out of screen-printed tissue. In typical cheeky fashion, Andy labeled it “The Souper Dress”.

Through his love of fashion, Warhol became fast friends with top designers such as Gianni Versace, Diane Von Furstenberg, Carolina Herrera, and Roy Halston – all of whom were seen around his chic and exclusive nightclub, Studio 54. In the book, Andy Warhol’s Exposures, the artist lists five rules for getting in. The first on the list reads, “Always go with Halston or in Halston.”