Andy Warhol (1928-1987) was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He became an iconic and versatile Pop artist. After studying design at the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh, Warhol moved to New York City in 1949 to pursue a career as a commercial artist. Though successful, Warhol wanted to be an independent painter, and in the early 1960s began to create paintings based on advertisement imagery. Shocking in its embrace of low art and its detachment from emotion, his early work quickly brought him fame. He produced the now infamous series of Campbell's Soup Cans, Disasters, Electric Chairs, and celebrity portraits (including Marilyn Monroe, Jackie Kennedy, and Elvis Presley) using commercial techniques such as screen printing and stenciling.

Though he is best remembered for his paintings, he also created hundreds of other works, including commercial advertisements and films. Warhol also founded Interview magazine, which is still in print. In the 1980s, Warhol's work was revitalized by collaborations with younger artists, such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Francesco Clemente, and Keith Haring, and he produced paintings such as The Last Supper. Per his desire, the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts was established after his death.