To help celebrate 6 Music’s Pop Art season, Now Playing applauds one of the most striking and dynamic cultural movements of the 20th Century…and we need YOU to help us.
Intrinsically linking music and art like no other genre, Pop Art can take dozens of different forms, and it’s here where we’ll mine the best examples of fantastic Pop Art and arty pop. You can start with the obvious picks…
Andy Warhol was, of course, the king of Pop Art and hung out with a whole host of music legends on a regular basis, including Jim Morrison, Brian Jones, Mick Jagger, Bob Dylan, The Velvet Underground and even Judy Garland.
He made legendary screen prints of Debbie Harry, Elvis Presley and Nico, created one of the most iconic album covers of all time for The Velvet Underground, and did you know he painted record sleeves in the 1950s for jazz artists? Before he hung out at The Factory, Warhol painted music artwork for Thelonious Monk, Kenny Burrell and Count Basie among others.
Or how about Roy Lichtenstein; U2 were inspired so much by his work that they wrote an album and made a tour based on his visual style. Sir Paul McCartney allegedly has an original Lichtenstein hanging in his Soho office.
Speaking of The Beatles, they and many others are famous for incredible album artwork, so you could use renowned album covers as a basis for a great song choice.
Or how about choosing an artist that uses visual art and design as an integral part of their offering? Step forward Bjork, Kraftwerk, Roxy Music, David Bowie, Talking Heads, Pink Floyd, Radiohead, Tool, Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush and many many more.
You pick the music, so get your Pop Art-inspired suggestions to Tom via the hashtag #PopArt6Music to help create a playlist. Comment on the Now Playing Facebook page, here on the blog, email nowplaying@bbc.co.uk or drag tracks onto our Spotify and Rdio playlists.
