Pearlstein attended Carnegie Mellon University, Carnegie Tech, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania alongside artists Dorothy Cantor and Andy Warhol in 1948, when the attached picture was taken. Warhol and Pearlstein lived together in NYC during the late 1940s. Cantor inevitably became Pearlstein’s wife with Warhol as a groomsman. This friendship between the three was cultivated in their different artistic expressions. Warhol’s artistic style was eccentric and pioneered Pop Art, whereas Cantor’s style is described as new realism, intentional, and geometric. Cantor’s style has some remnants of expressionism despite most of her subjects being landscapes. Warhol’s style defined popular culture at the time by using people and objects of symbolism during the 1980s. Despite possibly living in the shadows of Warhol, Pearlstein cemented himself as an icon for realism. Warhol is most famously known for his saturated and comedic Campbell soup cans. Cantor’s series of untitled landscapes provide intimate detail into her and Pearlstein’s life As seen through earlier works at Carnegie Tech, Pearlstein, Warhol, and Cantor all drew inspiration from one another specifically with layouts for landscaping, applying texture, and the flow of fabric. Needless to say, they all grew stronger artists through the presence and guidance of one another, both during and after college.
Kessler, Leonard. Photograph of Andy Warhol, Dorothy Cantor, and Philip Pearlstein. The Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. 1948. Accessed 2 April 2023.
Klein, Barbara. “Carnegie Magazine: Summer 2015: Before They Were Famous - by Barbara Klein.” Carnegie Magazine | Summer 2015 | Before They Were Famous - By Barbara Klein, 2017, https://carnegiemuseums.org/magazine-archive/2015/summer/feature-504.ht…. Accessed 2 April, 2023.