The initiative was inspired by Andy Warhol's Blue Painting, a work of art that was rediscovered a few years ago, depicting the Absolut bottle, which will soon be exhibited to the public for the first time in Europe in Stockholm. 

From mid-September, passers-by will also be able to see an eye-catching bench, repainted in Budapest's sixth district, in Hajós Street, thanks to a collaboration between the youngart online gallery and Absolut.

The public space initiative pays tribute to Andy Warhol's 'blue' painting, whose discovery in 2020 was a global sensation, and which will be exhibited to the public for the first time thanks to Absolut and the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.

The painting will be on show at the Spritmuseum in Stockholm as the centrepiece of the new exhibition Andy Warhol, Money On The Wall on 17 October.

More than just an ordinary bench

Warhol found pop culture and everyday objects an inexhaustible theme. He often photographed urban benches, for example, which he saw as the sites of exciting encounters, great conversations and intimate moments - a concept that also inspired the bench painting project by Absolut and youngart.

The bench was repainted by visual and street artist Orsi Fleith (MixedFlo), who is known for her socially critical, dialogue-sparking works. The bench she transformed pays homage to Warhol's well-known works and also to the rediscovered Blue Painting: painted in blue with expressive brushstrokes, it also evokes one of the iconic artist's most recognisable motifs, the banana, in blue and pink. 

"The aim of youngart is to connect young, talented artists with the public, to give them exposure, and our collaboration with Absolut reinforces this ambition. In addition, with this action we are also evoking the spirit of Warhol: we are bringing art closer to the people on the street with a completely ordinary object that is used by everyone, and at the same time we are turning the bench on Hajós Street into a work of art", said Panka Radics, head of youngart gallery.