At 98 years young, celebrated journalist, author, and cultural trailblazer Joan Kron continues to make headlines. “I’m 15 months away from being 100, so listen carefully,” Kron declared with characteristic wit at a New York gathering celebrating her latest book, The Renegade Housewives of Pop Art: A Memoir of the 1960s.
Published by Pointed Leaf Press, the memoir revisits a transformative era in contemporary art and chronicles Kron’s pioneering role in bringing Pop Art to a wider audience.
Suzy Slesin, Joan Kron photo: Sean Zanni
More than 100 friends, admirers, artists, and cultural figures gathered in the art-filled triplex of LaVon Kellner to honor Kron. The celebration was hosted by her son, Daniel Kron, and stepson, Jonathan Marder, alongside Suzanne Slesin, publisher of Pointed Leaf Press.
The Renegade Housewives of Pop Art photo:Sean Zanni
Kron returned to her native New York City for the occasion, which coincided with the Whitney Museum of American Art’s exhibition dedicated to Roy Lichtenstein. The exhibition features Super Sunset, a billboard Kron commissioned from the celebrated Pop Art artist in 1967.
Joan Kron and Audrey Sabol: Pioneers of the Pop Art Movement
During the 1960s, Kron and her collaborator Audrey Sabol helped shape the emerging Pop Art movement, working alongside some of the most influential artists of the era. Their creative circle included Jim Dine, Jasper Johns, Allan Kaprow, Claes Oldenburg, Robert Rauschenberg, Ed Ruscha, George Segal, Jean Tinguely, and Andy Warhol.
In 1962, Kron and Sabol presented what was described as the first group exhibition of Pop Art on the East Coast. They subsequently ventured into business, producing art multiples with prominent artists, including Robert Indiana, Roy Lichtenstein, and Marisol Escobar.
Kristina Allegra Kingston, LaVon Kellner photo:Sean Zanni
Their ambitious projects culminated in the Museum of Merchandise, an innovative retail and art concept that featured a storefront designed by the then-little-known Christo and a provocative product by rising Pop Art star Andy Warhol.
Through these ventures, Kron and Sabol challenged traditional boundaries between art, commerce, and popular culture, helping establish new ways for audiences to experience contemporary art.
From Art and Fashion Journalism to Documentary Filmmaking
Born and raised in New York City, Kron studied costume design at the Yale School of Drama, now known as the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale. After moving to Philadelphia, she became a founding member and head of the YM/YWHA Arts Council, where she co-produced several Pop Art exhibitions.
Kron later embarked on an impressive journalism career, writing for Philadelphia Magazine, New York Magazine, and The New York Times. She subsequently joined The Wall Street Journal, where she established its fashion beat, before serving as editor-in-chief of Avenue magazine.
Joan Kron, Jonathan Marder photo: Sean Zanni
Her career continued at Condé Nast’s Allure, where she created the publication’s plastic surgery beat, bringing a new perspective to beauty, cosmetic procedures, and their cultural implications.
Kron also expanded into filmmaking, producing and directing the award-winning documentary Take My Nose Please! Comediennes and Plastic Surgery. Her books include High-Tech: The Industrial Style and Source Book for the Home, co-authored with Suzanne Slesin, and Home-Psych: The Social Psychology of Home and Decoration.
Now based in Miami, Florida, Kron is developing her second film, Weapon of Beauty: The Cloak and Dagger History of Botox, continuing her exploration of beauty, identity, and the cultural forces shaping our perceptions of appearance.
Joan Kron, Fern Mallis photo: Sean Zanni
A Star-Studded Gathering of Fashion and Art Luminaries
The book celebration brought together an impressive guest list representing the worlds of fashion, journalism, art, publishing, and culture.
Among those attending were Teri Agins and J. Paul Hands, Steven M. L. Aronson, Jeffrey Banks, Bina and Walter Bernard, Myrna Blyth, Michele Oka and Fred Doner, RoseLee Goldberg and Dakota Jackson, Andrew Hawkins, Phoebe Hoban, Jackie Hoffman, Michele Gerber Klein and Leigh Seippel, W. Wilder Knight II, Helen Little, Fern Mallis, Gillian McCain and Jim Marshall, Liane Pei, Virginia and Steve Postrel, Pascale Richard, Jeff Roth, Susan Roy, Dan Shaw, Barbara Tober, Désirée von la Valette, and Saundra Whitney.
The gathering celebrated not only Kron’s latest literary achievement but also a lifetime of challenging conventions and connecting art, fashion, journalism, and popular culture.
With The Renegade Housewives of Pop Art, Kron brings renewed attention to the women whose vision and entrepreneurial spirit helped shape one of the most influential artistic movements of the 20th century.
Jackie Hoffman photo: Sean Zanni
Daniel Kron, Gianni Brito photo: Sean Zanni
Nick Jones photo: Sean Zanni
Saundra Whitney, Barbara Tober photo: Sean Zanni
Where to Buy The Renegade Housewives of Pop Art
Published by Pointed Leaf Press, The Renegade Housewives of Pop Art: A Memoir of the 1960s offers readers an insider’s perspective on the artists, ideas, and collaborations that transformed the art world.
Readers can pre-order the book through the publisher’s official website:
Order The Renegade Housewives of Pop Art at Pointed Leaf Press