Campbell’s Soup Cans

Hello there. We are a family of paintings. We are bright red and bright white. We all stand together in a long, neat line, just like friends holding hands. We look just like each other. We have round tops that shine and big, curly letters that spell out what kind of yummy soup is inside. Can you guess what we are? We are pictures of Campbell's Soup Cans. We are very famous art.

A kind man with fluffy white hair made us. His name was Andy. Andy loved to eat warm, yummy tomato soup. He thought the cans were so cheerful and beautiful. One day, a long, long time ago in the year 1962, he had a super fun idea. He decided to make art that looked just like his favorite soup. He used a special way to paint, almost like a big stamp. He would press, press, press, and a new soup can painting would appear like magic. He made thirty-two of us, a whole family of soup cans.

When people first saw us hanging in a big, quiet room, they giggled. Soup cans in a museum. How silly. But soon, their giggles turned into big smiles. They saw that something you see every single day can be special and beautiful, too. We showed everyone that art isn't just paintings of kings or far-off places. Art can be a can of soup. Art is everywhere. So the next time you go to the store, look all around. You might see art hiding on a shelf, just waiting for you to say hello.