Pauline Boty's Marilyn Monroe Paintings Explored in New Analysis
An analysis has been conducted on the representation of Marilyn Monroe by British Pop Art artist Pauline Boty, focusing on themes of femininity and celebrity culture. Boty, who was born on March 6, 1938, passed away at the young age of 28 and remains the only recognized female figure in British Pop Art. Encouraged by her mother, she pursued her artistic dreams at the Wimbledon School of Art. Her artworks, which were kept on her brother's farm until the 1990s, were brought back to light by curator David Mellor and Dr. Sue Tate. In January 2024, Tate, alongside Gazelli Art House, announced that Boty's 1962 piece Color Her Gone was created over her previously thought-lost Marilyn with Beads, emphasizing her critique of the mass media's impact on Monroe's identity.
Key facts
- Pauline Boty was born on March 6, 1938, and died at age 28.
- Boty was the only acknowledged female member of British Pop Art.
- She earned the nickname 'the Wimbledon Bardot' at the Wimbledon School of Art.
- Her works were rediscovered in the 1990s by curator David Mellor and academic Dr. Sue Tate.
- In January 2024, Sue Tate discovered that Color Her Gone was painted over Marilyn with Beads using reflectogram.
- The Only Blonde in the World (1963) was titled after a TIME Magazine piece and appropriated a Some Like It Hot still from LIFE Magazine.
- Color Her Gone (1962) used a TOWN Magazine photo taken at Santa Monica Beach and a title from a Barbra Streisand song.
- Epitaph to Something's Gotta Give (1962) was inspired by Monroe's nude pool scene from her unfinished last film.
Entities
Artists
- Pauline Boty
- Marilyn Monroe
- Brigitte Bardot
- Elvis Presley
- Jean-Paul Belmondo
- Monica Vitti
- Clive Goodwin
- Boty Goodwin
- David Mellor
- Sue Tate
- Arthur Miller
- Barbra Streisand
- Mary Pickford
- John Aston
- Lewis Morley
- Philippe Halsman
- Christopher Gregory
Institutions
- Wimbledon School of Art
- Royal College of Art
- School of Stained Glass
- School of Painting
- TIME Magazine
- LIFE Magazine
- TOWN Magazine
- Gazelli Art House
- Pauline Boty Organization
- Tate
- Christie's
- National Portrait Gallery
- Art Gallery of New South Wales
- Artfund
- Artsy
- Vogue France
Locations
- London
- United Kingdom
- Santa Monica Beach
- California
- United States