Wallpaper Mao: Don DeLillo, Andy Warhol, and Seriality

Abstract

Andy Warhol appears in two of Don DeLillo's novels, Mao II and Underworld. Moo II takes its title from a Warhol silkscreen that also adorns the cover of the novel; in the novel, DeLillo's characters look at Warhol's work in museums and offer theories about the work's power. Warhol is less of a factor in Underworld. He appears only once, in the chapter describing Truman Capote's Black and White Ball—“Andy Warhol walked by wearing a mask that was a photograph of his own face” (571)—but this brief appearance highlights some important connections between Warhol and DeLillo.