Valerie Solanas

Valerie Solanas (1936–1988) was an American radical feminist writer best known for the 1967 SCUM Manifesto and for shooting artist Andy Warhol in 1968.

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Andy Warhol: An American artist and filmmaker who became a leading figure in Pop art. Solanas shot Warhol at his studio in 1968; he survived and later gave testimony about the attack.
Attempted murder: The intentional but unsuccessful act of trying to kill another person. Solanas’s attack on Warhol was prosecuted as an attempted-murder case.
SCUM Manifesto: A 1967 polemical text by Valerie Solanas calling for the overthrow of male-dominated society. This is Solanas’s defining work and the source of her public reputation as a radical feminist writer.
Attempted assassination of Andy Warhol: Valerie Solanas’s 1968 shooting of Andy Warhol at his New York studio. The attack is the most consequential event associated with Solanas and permanently altered Warhol’s health.
Maurice Girodias: A French publisher who founded Olympia Press and published controversial literary works. He published Solanas’s SCUM Manifesto and became entangled in her dispute over its rights.
The Factory: Andy Warhol’s New York studio, a gathering place for artists, performers, and visitors. Solanas entered Warhol’s workplace before shooting him and art critic Mario Amaya.
Radical feminism: A feminist tradition that treats patriarchy as a fundamental system of social power. Solanas’s critique of male dominance is often situated within this broader political tradition.
Warhol’s recovery: Andy Warhol’s prolonged recovery from the life-threatening injuries inflicted in 1968. The shooting left Warhol with lasting physical effects and changed his later life and work.
Fred McDarrah: An American photographer and photojournalist known for documenting New York’s downtown art scene. His photographs helped preserve a visual record of Solanas and the cultural milieu around Warhol.
Mario Amaya: A British-born art critic and curator who worked in New York. Amaya was wounded in the same 1968 shooting in which Solanas injured Warhol.