THE OBAMA & MC CAIN BRANDS

His most overtly political work was a silkscreen of Richard Nixon in sickly green, his mouth fixed in a reptilian leer, with the words "Vote McGovern" beneath. Funds raised by sales of the image went directly to George McGovern's campaign.But later, as his toadying to celebrity, his disinterest in actual character, and his fascination with fame in and of itself became more blatant, Warhol's politics became more conservative - or, perhaps more accurately, less engaged. It's no surprise, given Ronald Reagan's preexisting status as a Hollywood celebrity, that Warhol courted him when he came to power. He used his magazine, Interview, as an instrument of relentless flattery in his attempts to be made official court portraitist to the Reagan administration, but no commission eventuated.If Warhol's politically related imagery still has the power to fascinate, it's not because of any ideology or conviction behind the work. It's because its mechanical, affectless, but immensely seductive nature mirrored developments in political presentation that we are all heirs to today. He saw politicians as human brand images - which is exactly how many politicians have come to see themselves.

-Boston Globe
Sept 7 2008