Andy Warhol Frölunda Hockey Player

Andy Warhol’s Frölunda Hockey Player from 1986 depicts Frölunda HC legend Christer Kellgren. It was commissioned by the Art Now Gallery in Göteborg, Sweden, the city which Frölunda HC represent. In his portrait of the player, Warhol freezes a moment of action and reduces the source photograph to bold colours that contrast vibrantly against the dark background. During the 1980s Kellgren was, for the city of Göteborg and perhaps Sweden as a whole, one of the most iconic public figures. The artwork is therefore consistent with Warhol’s career-long obsession with pop culture and fame. However, unlike some of his most iconic images such as Campbell’s Soup, Elvis and Marilyn the artist is not operating from an American perspective. The exploration of iconic non-American subjects was a pre-occupation of Warhol’s during the mid-80s and parallels can be drawn between Frölunda Hockey Player and works such as Vesuvius and Cologne Cathedral which depict the most iconic landmarks in Naples and Cologne respectively.