River City Bangkok hosts an unmissable Andy Warhol exhibition

Think of pop art, and you will almost certainly picture images of Campbell's soup cans, or brightly coloured silk-screen prints of celebrities such as Marilyn Monroe, Michael Jackson or Debbie Harry. The vivid imagery of Andy Warhol's art is so well known that it has almost managed to permeate the collective unconscious – even if the origins of his work are unbeknown to the viewer, it's likely that a significant portion of the world's population has at some point come across prints or reproductions of his work.

Warhol's contribution to contemporary art cannot be exaggerated. Like it or loathe it, the pop art movement caused shock waves through the art world, and forever changed notions of what can be considered as art. From his studio and art hub, The Factory, the NYC based-artist explored the relationship between artistic expression, advertising and celebrity via the mediums of photography, painting, print and sculpture. His works include some of the most expensive pieces of art ever sold.

Warhol's work and a key episode in the manifestation of club culture as we know it today are inextricably linked, with two ground-breaking sub-cultural movements crossing paths in New York City at the same exciting period in human history. In the late '70s and early '80s was a regular at the home of the newly-emerged disco sound, Studio 54. This decadent playground was perhaps the archetypal super-club, and it was here about which he coined the phrase "dictatorship at the door, democracy on the floor," referring to the club's notoriously strict door policy. This was the place where the great and the good would rub shoulders as rousing, uplifting disco rhythms burst out of Richard Long's cutting edge sound-system.

The exciting Bangkok exhibition contains 128 original works and pieces of memorabilia. The show is split into four categories: Self – Portraits and Photos, Celebrity Portraits, Magazine and Album Covers, and Silk Printing and Others. Some of the more famous exhibits to look out for are Andy Warhol and Salvador Dali (1978), Marilyn (1981), The Velvet Underground and Nico (1967), Brillo Box (1970), Dollar (1981-1982), Flowers (1964), Campbell’s Soup Can (1967), and Cow (1971). There will also be lectures from experts, which have been arranged in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok.

For lovers of art and contemporary sub-culture (who are able to travel to Bangkok before the end of November), this opportunity to see the pop art master's originals is simply unmissable.

Andy Warhol 'Pop Art' is open at River City Bangkok from August 12 to November 24. You can find more information and book tickets here