Existing comment:
Michael Jackson, 1958-2009
Born Gary, Indiana
Michael Jackson rocketed to fame-first with his brothers, the Jackson 5, whose first four singles (including "ABC" and "I Want You Back") topped the charts in 1970-and then through solo albums. Jackson was clearly one of the biggest pop stars of the 1980s, and his best-selling album Thriller (1982) was a huge popular and critical success, winning an unprecedented eight Grammy Awards. In 1984, when Time commissioned Andy Warhol to make Jackson's portrait, the slightly built dancer and singer was at the height of his fame, and Warhol was the perfect choice to transform Jackson into a pop celebrity icon. The then-twenty-six-year-old star is preserved by Warhol, even though this image has been replaced in the public mind by his notorious masklike visage.
Andy Warhol
1984 (Time magazine cover March 19, 1984)
NOTE: When the Portrait Gallery hung this after his death, the last line of this description was changed to the following:
The then-twenty-six-year-old star is preserved by Warhol, even though this image has been replaced in the public mind by a dramatically different visage. |