Top Stories 2015 | #1 — Andy Warhol and Tacoma Dome

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Tacoma Daily Index is looking back at the 10 most read articles among visitors to our Web site in 2015.

A campaign is under way to place a floral design created more than 30 years ago by Pop artist Andy Warhol atop the Tacoma Dome. Warhol was among a group of high-profile artists who proposed public art for the Dome while the arena was under construction during the early 1980s (see “City Council vote would formally support Warhol art atop Tacoma Dome,” Tacoma Daily Index, Feb. 6, 2015; “City Council committee to revisit plan for Warhol art atop Tacoma Dome,” Tacoma Daily Index, Dec. 1, 2014; “A rooftop test for Tacoma Dome Warhol flower,” Tacoma Daily Index, April 22, 2014; and Discussion continues on Warhol Tacoma Dome roof plan,” Tacoma Daily Index, April 17, 2014).

This story has been reported for several years and has garnered media attention beyond Tacoma. But the Tacoma Daily Index was more interested in what factors were at play 30 years ago that led Warhol to create public art for the iconic arena. To that end, we began to track down and interview some of the story’s key players as part of a four-part series that explored this angle.

The series began in March with the local architect Lyn Messenger, who created the original rooftop design that still covers the Dome (see “Tacoma Dome: Before Warhol’s flower, Lyn Messenger drew diamonds on the Dome,” Tacoma Daily Index, March 30, 2015); continued in April with Ellida Lathrop, who pushed for the One Percent for Art ordinance during the 1970s — a move that eventually created a sizable budget for public art at the Dome (see “Tacoma Dome: How Ellida Lathrop helped to shape public art at the Dome,” Tacoma Daily Index, April 6, 2015), and Amy McBride, the City of Tacoma’s Arts Administrator who is currently advocating for Warhol’s work atop the Dome (see “Tacoma Dome: For Amy McBride, Warhol’s rooftop flower is larger than the Dome,” Tacoma Daily Index, April 14, 2015); and concluded in May with Vincent Fremont, who was managing Warhol’s New York City studio when the commission landed on his desk three decades ago (see “Tacoma Dome: 33 years later, Vincent Fremont recalls Warhol’s Tacoma connection,” Tacoma Daily Index, May 15, 2015).

Collectively, the series was the most read item on the Tacoma Daily Index‘s Web site in 2015.

Ellida Lathrop. (PHOTO BY TODD MATTHEWS)

To read earlier coverage of the Tacoma Daily Index‘s top stories during 2015, click on the following links:

Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — November 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, Dec. 1, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — October 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, Nov. 2, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — September 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, Oct. 1, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — August 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, Sept. 1, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — July 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, Aug. 3, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — June 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, July 1, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — May 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, June 1, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — April 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, May 1, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — March 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, April 1, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — February 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, March 2, 2015)
Tacoma Daily Index Top Stories — January 2015 (Tacoma Daily Index, Feb. 2, 2015)

Todd Matthews is editor of the Tacoma Daily Index, an award-winning journalist, and the author of several books. His journalism is collected online at wahmee.com.