Ultra Violet Holly Viva

They were gorgeous and wild, like lions and fire. They seemed to be doing what they wanted to do, though now I think they had a puppet master and likely would have been better off without him, as female artists in charge of their own careers.

But hey, you say, what about freedom of choice, right? Free agency? And hey, I say, all right. These women told us they were where they wanted to be.

Growing up, I wanted their lives, or at least, the glamorous parts. I'm talking about the Andy Warhol actors like Viva and Ultra Violet, Holly Woodlawn and others.

I go back and forth with my feelings about Warhol--he seems brilliant and brilliantly manipulative at once--but am less equivocal about the women who worked with him (though he might say they worked "for" him). 

These were not the icons he built his reputation on, like Marilyn Monroe. But while Viva (Janet Susan Mary Hoffmann) and Ultra Violet (Isabelle Collin Dufresne) appeared in Warhol's films and (supposedly)? had enormous amounts of sexual encounters while being part of Warhol's entourage, they were artists, writers and the original influencers of taste and fashion way before social media. (Dufresne passed away in 2014, but Hoffmann is still writing and creating.)

Were they happy being part of Warhol Land? I prefer to quote Holly Woodlawn, who said, "What difference does it make? As long as you look fabulous." She was actually answering a question about whether or not she was transsexual--but the answer could have been about working with Andy Warhol as well.

There were numerous others in this orbit--Lou Reed and Velvet Underground, Candy Darling, Nico, Edie Sedgewick and more--and however well or badly they fared, their lives always seemed to have a freedom mine has been lacking. There is something about being able to throw all caution to the winds and live adventurously, without thought of consequences or what people think of you.

Maybe it's a "young" thing? I remember reading something by Viva where she said she wouldn't do this or that anymore because of her daughter. She also referred to Warhol as Satan and says a lot of what we read about her is fiction. 

Maybe such lives are best lived as fiction, and like Proust, we do our best work when imagining them. Warhol's women superstars will always hold a special place in my heart, though. Living bravely as an artist sometimes means you take the chances nobody else will.

Arthouse photo:  gax8627