Archie Warhol

Archie Warhol
Andy Warhol and Archie by Jack Mitchell, 1973
SpeciesDog
BreedDachshund
SexMale
BornAugust 3, 1972
Known forAndy Warhol's pet
OwnersAndy Warhol
Jed Johnson
Named afterArchie Bunker

Archie Warhol was a dachshund owned by pop artist Andy Warhol and interior designer Jed Johnson. Archie was featured in Warhol's works and depicted in paintings with him. He became a socialite, joining Warhol to parties and on trips to Europe. A few years after they adopted Archie, Warhol and Johnson got him a playmate, a dachshund named Amos.

Life

After years of owning dozens of cats in the 1950s and 1960s, Andy Warhol's partner, Jed Johnson, convinced him that they should adopt a dog for Christmas in 1972.[1] Johnson settled on a black and tan shorthaired dachshund puppy which they named Archie. He was named after the wisecracking character Archie Bunker in the popular TV series All in the Family.[2][1]

Warhol and Johnson doted on Archie. He had a Tiffany's dog tag and an Hermès leash.[3][4] Warhol would always carry him around and urge him to speak.[1][2] Archie accompanied Warhol to his studio, art openings, parties, and restaurants.[5][4] Warhol would also bring Archie to press conferences as his "alter ego" and "would deflect questions to [Archie] that he did not want to answer."[5]

In the Spring of 1973, Warhol and Archie traveled to Rome where Johnson was working with director Paul Morrissey on the films Flesh for Frankenstein (1973) and Blood for Dracula (1974) at Cinecittà Studios.[6] In October 1973, they returned to Rome to shoot Warhol's scene in the film The Driver's Seat (1974).[7][8]

Archie gained fame as Warhol's companion, and people recognized him on the street.[9] As a result, he had a high modeling fee.[2] Warhol was a self-proclaimed stage mother and took Archie to photoshoots.[2] They appeared in various publications such the New York Daily News, the New York Post, the Associated Press, L'Uomo Vogue, and Esquire.[10][9][11] He also appeared with him in a Pioneer Electronics advertisement in 1974.[12]

Archie and Amos lived with Warhol and Johnson at 57 E 66th St in the Lenox Hill neighborhood of Manhattan. In 1998, the townhouse was designated a cultural landmark.

In 1974, Warhol and Johnson decided to expand their family, adopting a light brown shorthaired dachshund they named Amos. Warhol said Amos was a Christmas present for Archie, and he would call him Archie's puppy.[13][2] "Unlike Archie who enjoyed the company of people and was very social, Amos was more like a regular dog," said Vincent Fremont, a member of Warhol's inner circle.[5]

Amos was photographed with Johnson and Warhol superstar Geraldine Smith in the February 1976 issue of Interview magazine.[14] Warhol pained silkscreen portraits of Johnson and their dachshunds.[15]

Eventually, Warhol stopped taking Archie with him to events, certain that he would be entertained with Amos at home.[5] They lived at 57 E 66th St on Manhattan's Upper East Side, and Johnson managed his decorating business from the fourth floor.[16][17] Archie and Amos would use the elevator in the townhouse.[17][16]

On August 3, 1980, Warhol told his diary: "It was Archie's birthday and he's eight or nine or even older. I gave him a box of Hartz Mountain treats."[18] When Johnson moved out of Warhol's townhouse in December 1980, the two shared custody of Archie and Amos.[19] Johnson would take them for the weekend to his apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.[20] In a December 1986 diary entry, Warhol said:

Archie and Amos were sick last night. Jed picked them up and took them to the doctor's. Ran into him later, he was with Katy Jones, and he was talking about what was wrong with the dogs. They're just really getting old. I told Jed I'd give him one of the Dog paintings. Life's so short and a dog's life is even shorter—they'll both be going to heaven soon.[21]

In February 1987, Warhol died following gallbladder surgery.[22] Archie and Amos survived him, and they lived with Johnson until their deaths years later. According to Warhol's friend Paige Powell, they "lived to be about 21 years old."[23]

In pop culture

In 1974, artist Martin Hoffman painted a portrait of Archie and Warhol at the Factory.[24]

Archie was depicted in paintings and drawings by artist Jamie Wyeth in the exhibition "Andy Warhol and Jamie Wyeth Portraits of Each Other" at New York's Coe Kerr Gallery in 1976.[25][26]

A photo of Archie dressed as the Pope was published in Warhol's book Exposures (1979).[27]

A photo of Archie taken by Peter Hujar in 1975 was published in the book Black and White Dogs (1992) by Jean-Claude Suarès.[28]

In 2022, a mixed media image by Warhol titled "Archie, the Dachshund" was included in the exhibition "A Thousand Hounds: A Walk with Dogs Through the History of Photography" at the UBS Paine Webber Art Gallery in New York.[29]

Bibliography

  • Colacello, Bob (1990). Holy Terror: Andy Warhol Up Close. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-016419-5.
  • Warhol, Andy; Hackett, Pat (1989). The Andy Warhol Diaries. New York: Warner Books. ISBN 9780446514262.

References

  1. ^ a b c Colacello 1990, p. 144.
  2. ^ a b c d e Warhol, Andy (October 1975). "David Cassidy". Andy Warhol's Interview. 5 (10): 10, 12.
  3. ^ Winters, Renee M. (2015-06-19). The Hoarding Impulse: Suffocation of the Soul. Routledge. p. 90. ISBN 978-1-317-54963-5.
  4. ^ a b Colacello 1990, p. 150.
  5. ^ a b c d Woodward, Daisy (2013-08-06). "Andy Warhol's Cats and Dogs". AnOther. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
  6. ^ Colacello 1990, p. 145.
  7. ^ Suzy (October 9, 1973). "Suzy Says: A Dashing Dachshund". Daily News. New York. p. 12.
  8. ^ Colacello 1990, p. 159.
  9. ^ a b "Andy-isms: Highlights from a decade of interviews by Andy Warhol". Interview. 19 (11): 90. November 1989.
  10. ^ "Group Portrait with Accountant | Esquire | NOVEMBER 1974". Esquire | The Complete Archive. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
  11. ^ Kazickas, Jurate (1975-09-03). "Celebrity Chasing Warhol's Bag". The Olympian. pp. B7. Retrieved 2025-01-06.
  12. ^ "Pioneer - Andy Warhol's unfinished symphony. - printad 1973". adland.tv. 1974-12-20. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
  13. ^ Warhol, Andy (March 1975). "Lee". Andy Warhol's Interview. 5 (3): 5.
  14. ^ "KissKissKissKissKiss". Andy Warhol's Interview. 6 (2): 25. February 1976.
  15. ^ Wrbican, Matt (2009). Andy Warhol Treasures. London: Goodman. p. 77. ISBN 978-1-84796-004-7.
  16. ^ a b Pyle, Richard (1998-08-06). "Lasting Fame for Warhol Home". The News Tribune. p. 2. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  17. ^ a b Nevins, Jake (2023-05-10). "Jay Johnson Remembers the Quiet Luxury and Kindness of His Brother Jed". Interview Magazine. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
  18. ^ Warhol & Hackett 1989, p. 309Entry date: August 3, 1980
  19. ^ Warhol & Hackett 1989, p. 350Entry date: December 21, 1980
  20. ^ Warhol & Hackett 1989, p. 700Entry date: December 15, 1985
  21. ^ Warhol & Hackett 1989, p. 780Entry date: December 5, 1986
  22. ^ McGill, Douglas C. (February 23, 1987). "Andy Warhol; Pop Artist, Dies". The New York Times.
  23. ^ Powell, Paige; Hastreiter, Kim (2019). Paige Powell. Vol. Animals. New York: Dashwood Books. p. 122. ISBN 978-0-9966574-5-7. OCLC 1117498195.
  24. ^ Ashley, Skyler (2018-01-18). "Invading Andy Warhol’s personal space". City Pulse. Retrieved 2024-12-20.
  25. ^ Russ, Eric (2019-11-04). "Jamie Wyeth's Portrait of Andy Warhol Captures the Artist at His Most Vulnerable". Sothebys.com. Retrieved 2024-12-21.
  26. ^ Kramer, Hilton (1976-06-04). "Art: Warhol Meets Wyeth". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2024-04-09. Retrieved 2024-12-21.
  27. ^ Adler, Jerry (November 25, 1979). "Andy Warhol Exposed". Daily News Sunday News Magazine. New York. p. 2.
  28. ^ Suarès, Jean-Claude (1992). Black and White Dogs. Collins Publishers San Francisco. p. 12. ISBN 978-0-00-255081-9.
  29. ^ Strauber, Alan (March 14, 2002). "Show Pays Homage to Canine Mystique". Poughkeepsie Journal. pp. 1D.