Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen presents an exhibition by pop art icon Marisol

The Venezuelan-American artist Marisol (1930–2016) is returning to Rotterdam for the first time since 1968. With more than eighty international loans, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen is presenting a unique tribute to this Pop Art icon at the Depot: from her colourful wooden human figures to strange underwater creatures and intimate drawings. In 1968, following the Venice Biennale, her work came to Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen for her first solo museum exhibition.

Just as they did 58 years ago, visitors once again find themselves face to face with absolute masterpieces, such as the wooden sculpture *La visita* (1964), a group portrait of three women and a child featuring casts and items of clothing by the artist. Also on display is *Mi Mamá y Yo* (1968), in which Marisol depicted herself as a young girl with her mother – a work she herself regarded as a favourite.

Another absolute highlight is *The Car* (1964). In 1972, Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen succeeded in acquiring this work. Marisol created this blue Ford Falcon convertible on a half-scale, with room for five passengers. Young and old, men and women, black and white: a mix of generations and identities. All the passengers, except the driver, have the artist’s face. The car is full of surprising details, from illuminated headlights to a working radio. With *The Car*, Marisol explores the identity she could adopt as a woman in the 1960s. At the same time, the car alludes to the American dream of freedom, whilst for many non-white Americans, travel was in fact restricted and interracial marriages were still illegal in many states. More than sixty years on, *The Car* takes new generations on a journey towards freedom.

In the late 1960s, Marisol withdrew from the art world, seeking to escape the limelight and all the fame. In Tahiti (French Polynesia), she discovered her passion for diving and became increasingly aware of environmental pollution. After two years, the artist resurfaced in New York, brimming with inspiration. She no longer chose to create human figures, but instead made wooden fish and underwater creatures. The works serve as a wake-up call about the threatened ecosystem, but also criticise American power. Some sculptures take the form of submarines that were present during the Cold War. Critics wrote scathing reviews. Despite several exhibitions in the decades that followed, this once-celebrated artist slowly faded from the public eye.

Andy Warhol

In the 1960s, Marisol was one of the stars of the New York art world and graced the covers of leading magazines. She was friends with Andy Warhol, who affectionately described her as ‘The first female artist with glamour’. Yet her name is virtually unknown to the general public today. Behind Marisol’s many faces lie incisive reflections on themes such as femininity, identity, climate and American global power – subjects that, after so many years, prove to be surprisingly topical.

In the New York art scene of the early 1960s, Marisol met Andy Warhol, who was still relatively unknown at the time, and the two became close friends. Warhol affectionately described her as: ‘The first female artist with glamour’. Warhol featured Marisol in his experimental short films, whilst she, in turn, portrayed him in a sculpture. Several films are shown in the exhibition, including *Kiss* (1964). Although Warhol is now known as an artist of world renown, Marisol was the bigger star in the 1960s. Her incisive reflections on themes such as femininity, identity, climate and American global power remain surprisingly relevant today.

With only two sculptures in European collections (one of which is at Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen), this exhibition consists mainly of special loans from the United States. The majority of the works come from the Buffalo AKG Art Museum, which manages Marisol’s estate.