Julia Warhola
| Julia Warhola | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Júlia Justína Zavacká November 17, 1892 Miková, Austria-Hungary (today Slovakia) |
| Died | November 22, 1972 (aged 80) |
| Resting place | Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Residence | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US |
| Other names | Júlia Varcholová |
| Ethnicity | Rusyn |
| Known for | Andy Warhol's mother |
| Religion | Ruthenian Catholic Church |
| Spouse(s) | Andrej Warhola (1889-1942) m.1909 |
| Children |
Paul Warhola John Warhola (1925-2010) Andy Warhol (1928-1987) |
| Relatives | James Warhola (grandson) |
| Website | http://www.warhola.com |
Julia Warhola (Rusyn: Юлія Варгола, November 17, 1892—November 22, 1972) was the mother of the American artist Andy Warhol.
Life
Warhola was born Júlia Justína Zavacká to a peasant family in the Rusyn village of Miková, Austria-Hungary (now in northeast Slovakia) and married Ondrej Varchola (Americanized as Andrew Warhola) there in 1909. He emigrated to the United States soon after, and in 1921 she followed him to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The couple had three children: Paul, John, and Andrew (Andy). The family lived at several Pittsburgh addresses, but beginning in 1932 at 3252 Dawson Street in the Oakland neighborhood of the city. The family was Byzantine Catholic and attended St. John Chrysostom Byzantine Catholic Church. Her husband died in 1942.
Julia enjoyed singing traditional Rusyn folk songs and was artistic. She loved to draw. Her favorite subjects were angels and cats. She also did embroidery and other crafts, such as bouquets of hand-made flowers made from tin cans and crepe paper. During the Easter season she decorated eggs in the Pysanka tradition.
As a widow, she moved to New York City in 1951 to take care of Andy. He often used her decorative handwriting to accompany his illustrations. She won awards for her lettering, including one from the American Institute of Graphic Arts for an album cover for The Story Moondog, featuring the musician Louis Thomas Hardin in 1958. In 1957 she illustrated a small book called Holy Cats[1] and she also worked on 25 Cats Name Sam and One Blue Pussy.[2]
In 1966, Andy made a movie called Mrs. Warhol (black-and-white, 66 minutes). It features Julia in her basement apartment in Andy's house playing “an aging peroxide movie star with a lot of husbands,” including the most current spouse, played by Richard Rheem. Andy follows her about with his camera as she goes about her daily domestic routines.
In 1971, she returned to Pittsburgh and died a year later. She is buried, alongside her husband and near her son Andy, in St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Cemetery in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, a south suburb of Pittsburgh.[3]
References
- ↑ Warhola, Julia; Warhol, Andy (1987). Holy Cats. New York: Panache Press at Random House. OCLC 229481850.
- ↑ Warhol, Andy (1987). 25 Cats Name Sam and One Blue Pussy. Charles Lisanby, Julia Warhola. New York: Panache Press of Random House. ISBN 978-0-394-56930-7. OCLC 81128225.
- ↑ Bockris, Victor (1989). The Life and Death of Andy Warhol. New York: Bantam Books. ISBN 0-553-05708-1.