Flavorwire

Long before and since his death on June 25, 2009, Michael Jackson, the self-styled “King of Pop,” was a muse to a wide group of contemporary artists — ranging from Andy Warhol, who was dubbed the “Pope of Pop Art,” and his neo-pop art protégés, Jeff Koons and David LaChapelle, to the hip-hop championing Kehinde Wiley and celebrated street artist KAWS. Now, nearly two years after his untimely death at age 50, Flavorpill pays tribute to the award winning singer/songwriters life through the works of art he inspired.

Andy Warhol, Michael Jackson (Green), 1984

Warhol was commissioned by Time magazine to paint Jackson’s portrait in 1984 and made several versions of the portrait, which shows the handsome young singer wearing the jacket from the “Thriller” video. The one published in Time, which had a yellow background, is now in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery, while this version sold at auction for more than $1 million shortly after Jackson’s death.