1 OF 8 
Dame Elizabeth Taylor
1 of 8 portraits by Andy Warhol
© 2021 The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York and DACS, London
Share this
Dame Elizabeth Taylor
by Andy Warhol
offset lithograph, 1967
22 in. x 22 in. (559 mm x 559 mm)
Purchased, 1989
Primary Collection
NPG 6051
Artistback to top
- Andy Warhol (1928-1987), Artist. Artist or producer of 8 portraits, Sitter in 2 portraits.
Linked publicationsback to top
- Gibson, Robin; Clerk, Honor, 20th Century Portraits in the National Portrait Gallery Collection, 1993, p. 31 Read entry
Though born in London, Liz Taylor's parents were American and the family was evacuated to Beverly Hills in 1942. It was there that her fortunes lay and a succession of films as a child star reached its climax with National Velvet (1944), where her portrayal of Velvet Brown's obsession gave a hint of the best performances of her adult career. Embittered, frustrated or angry characters have brought out her most powerful acting in roles such as Maggie Pollitt in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) and Martha in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?> (1966).
Andy Warhol was probably the most widely known exponent of American Pop Art and in his multiple images of Campbell's Soup cans and Coca Cola bottles created an art form whose impious creed exalted commercial production at the expense of the individual artist's craftsmanship. Like his better known portraits of Marilyn Monroe, the lithograph of Liz Taylor derives from a photograph and is similar in style to the portraits of Her Majesty The Queen and Mick Jagger, also on view in the Late 20th Century Galleries.
Events of 1967back to top
Current affairs
Harold Wilson decides to devalue the pound by nearly 15% in order to ' break out from the straitjacket' of boom and bust economics. The decision was controversial and prompted Wilson to reassure the public that the 'pound in your pocket' would not be worth any less.Art and science
The Beatles release Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, with a record sleeve designed by pop artist, Peter Blake. The band's musical experimentation and colourful new look was an example of psychedelic, and the LP is often regarded as one of the first concept albums.International
Che Guevara is captured and executed in Bolivia. The guerrilla leader and revolutionary icon was hunted down by the CIA and captured and shot by Bolivian Special Forces. He had been leading Bolivian insurgents in an attempt to overthrow the government.Comments back to top
We are currently unable to accept new comments, but any past comments are available to read below.
If you need information from us, please use our Archive enquiry service . Please note that we cannot provide valuations. You can buy a print or greeting card of most illustrated portraits. Select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Buy a Print button. Prices start at around £6 for unframed prints, £16 for framed prints. If you wish to license an image, select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Use this image button, or contact our Rights and Images service. We digitise over 8,000 portraits a year and we cannot guarantee being able to digitise images that are not already scheduled.
