The Velvet Years

The Velvet Years: 1965-1967

Warhol’s Factory

This collection of photographs, taken by Stephen Shore between 1965 and 1967, depicts the scene at Andy Warhol’s studio, the Factory. Shore captures a time when Warhol was emerging as a prominent visual artist and avant-garde filmmaker. The Factory that Shore depicts is populated with a diverse group of musicians, artists, actors, writers and aspiring cultural sophisticates.

The Velvet Underground was very much a part of Warhol’s scene. He is credited with galvanizing their career and promoting them through his multi-media show, the Exploding Plastic Inevitable. The group consisted of Lou Reed on guitar and vocals, John Cale on electric violin and viola, Sterling Morrison on bass and Maureen “Mo” Tucker on drums. Nico, one of Warhol’s discoveries, performed and sang with the group for a short period of time. She received equal billing on the Velvets’ first album, for which Warhol designed the cover: a peelable illustration of a banana. The group was a forerunner of punk rock and their sound and style greatly influenced David Bowie, the New York Dolls, Patti Smith, Blondie, the Sex Pistols and many others.