The war and the hole

To speak about “Pop” is to be struck by a colorful and potent ad called Warhol.

Recently, I saw the movie The Apprentice, the one I believe —surely wrong— is the first film about Donald Trump’s career. Curiously, the scene and line that left a strong mark on my mind is when a young Trump meets Andy at a party. Trump asks him what he does and if he is successful, to which Warhol answers: “Being good in business is the most fascinating kind of art. Making money is art and working is art and good business is the best art.”

Possibly. But the way I see it, Dalí and Warhol were the first artists who had a clear vision of trends, marketing, and advertising as a single entity.

más sopa de ojo, digital artwork, 2023

Art is as discarnate and fierce as any other business or professional field —even in crime (this is not an apologia). In short, it’s another “war”: you need to know your enemy/competitor better than yourself, understand both your strengths and weaknesses, the battlefield, your resources, and what you’re best at.

You need a strong and thorough strategy, action and contingency plans, and proper timing to attack the market —but most importantly, you must know when to retreat to regroup your ideas and creation for the next assault. And this last part means getting well covered in your best trench [your hole].

Unfortunately, that capacity of being a visual artist, marketer, advertiser, creative director, salesman, and everything down the funnel is reserved for very few… life decides. Believe me, I know it firsthand, with fresh blood on my forehead.

The war and the hole