Andy Warhol created Paratrooper Boots (Negative) during the 1980s, during the midst of the Cold War. The boots convey a sense of fashion and pride donned by the airborne unites of the United States military. Warhol’s Paratrooper Boots (Negative) and Paratrooper Boots (Positive) are some of the few paintings that the artist created during his career. The two paintings are exact color inverses of each other, both painted in black and white. The paintings have a text along the lefthand and lower sides, which seem to be deliberately minimally legible. Both paintings are a testament to the time and the revered soldiers in the Cold War.
Paratrooper Boots (Negative) by Andy Warhol as Part of his Larger Body of Work
During the 1980s, when the United States was in the midst of the Cold War, Andy Warhol’s work began to reflect themes of war, death, and religion. Warhol’s Paratrooper Boots conveys a state of heightened awareness over the impending war, portraying the American army’s readiness to jump into battle at a moment’s notice. In the beginning of his career, Warhol was known for his glamorous, celebrity-centered works, but in the late 80s, political themes became an integral part of many of his pieces, suggesting the pervasive influence of war on American culture.
