Untold Warhol: Newly Discovered Films Offer a Raw Look at the Artist’s World

A packed house at the Museum of Modern Art on Monday night, February 2nd, witnessed the premiere of over an hour of previously unseen footage from Andy Warhol’s prolific filmmaking career. The films, shot in the 1960s, remained undeveloped for six decades, offering a new lens through which to view the artist’s work and persona.

The screening, titled “Andy Warhol Exposed: The Newly Processed Films,” was the culmination of a project initiated in 2015 when Katie Trainor, MoMA’s film collections manager, and Greg Pierce, then director of film and video at the Andy Warhol Museum, discovered a box labeled “raw stock” within the museum’s extensive Warhol archive in Pennsylvania. Initial assumptions that the reels contained unusable footage were quickly overturned upon closer inspection. The box held 45 rolls of 16mm film, each capable of holding approximately four minutes of footage, and many showed signs of having been exposed.

The reason these films remained undeveloped for so long remains unclear. The chaotic nature of Warhol’s “Factory” studio is one possible explanation, with the sheer volume of his output potentially outpacing processing capabilities. Another possibility is that the images were believed to have faded entirely over time.

The newly revealed material encompasses a wide range of Warhol’s filmmaking interests, including footage from his “Screen Tests” series, early experimental works, candid documentation of Pop Art culture, and a significant amount of explicit content. This explicit material, in particular, is prompting a re-evaluation of Warhol’s relationship with sexuality and his role in challenging societal norms.

During the screening, Film Curator Josh Siegel encouraged audience members to identify anyone they recognized on screen, acknowledging that some individuals remain unidentified. The films themselves are largely silent, black and white, and often feature extended, unedited takes. The occasional rumble of the subway beneath the museum even punctuated the viewing experience, drawing spontaneous applause from the audience.

Footage included scenes from Warhol’s films “Sleep,” “Kiss,” and “Couch,” alongside party scenes from the Factory and shaky footage of a road trip with The Velvet Underground to Ann Arbor, Michigan, in March 1966. One early scene featured a sleeping man, followed by playful outtakes and candid moments. A segment originally intended for Warhol’s 1974 film “Dracula” depicted a man between two women, one eating a banana while the other playfully teased him with a Hershey’s chocolate bar.

Other scenes showed a woman on a couch observing another repositioning a mannequin torso, and a reception featuring Richard Serra. However, it was the Factory party footage that truly captured the energy and allure of Warhol’s inner circle, with Warhol himself appearing in several shots amidst a crowd of dancing figures.

Warhol’s foray into filmmaking began after being introduced to filmmakers like Jonas Mekas, leading him to prioritize the medium throughout the 1960s. The June 1968 shooting of Warhol by Valerie Solanas marked a turning point, after which he increasingly delegated filmmaking responsibilities to collaborators like Paul Morrissey.

The films often featured extended, static shots, deliberately challenging conventional narrative structures and audience expectations. The “Screen Tests,” in particular, involved subjects silently facing the camera for extended periods, forcing viewers to confront their own reactions to the unadorned presence of another human being. The newly released footage adds to this existing body of work, offering further opportunities for contemplation.

The explicit content within the newly processed films is particularly noteworthy. Scenes depicting uninhibited sexual acts, including one featuring a man with a woman and another man, were shown without censorship. Warhol’s exploration of sexuality, particularly within the context of the 1960s and 70s, when homosexuality faced widespread criminalization and social stigma, is now being re-examined. His 1969 film, “Blue Movie,” was the first sexually explicit film to receive wide release in mainstream cinemas.

The screening at MoMA suggests that Warhol’s work continues to provoke and challenge audiences decades after its creation. The rediscovery and processing of these films offer a unique opportunity to reassess his artistic legacy and his contribution to the evolving landscape of American cinema and culture. The films, processed with the assistance of Colorlab, represent a significant addition to Warhol’s already substantial body of work, and a testament to the enduring power of his artistic vision.