Andy Warhol turned products into icons and icons into products, and in the process he became both. One of the most creative capitalists this country has produced, Warhol artfully exposed the power of commercialism and then exploited it for profit in his lifetime and beyond.

Americans appreciate that kind of alchemy like no other, which may be one of the reasons the Warhol licensing program is doing so well. In 2007 revenue generated from licensing fees was $2 million, up from $400,000 just 10 years ago. So who is getting all that money? It goes toward the endowment for the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, which was established in accordance with the artist's will in 1987.

"The mission of the foundation is the advancement of the visual arts, by fostering innovative artistic expression" explained Michael Hermann, director of licensing for the foundation. The program is something Warhol clearly would have embraced. In 1966 he took out an ad in the Village Voice that read, "I'll endorse with my name any of the following: clothing, AC-DC, cigarettes, small tapes, sound equipment, ROCK 'N Roll Records, anything, film, and film equipment, Food, Helium, Whips, Money!! love and kisses ANDY WARHOL."

Taking its cue from him, the foundation has branded everything from clothing and jewelry to barware and snowboards. Diane von Furstenberg will soon be launching a line of Warhol-inspired resortwear including bathing suits, beach bags and hats. There are jeans by Levis and casual footwear by Royal Elastics. Seiko does several Warhol watches, while Sphinx by Oriental Weavers offers machine and handmade area rugs. Those are just some of the products available. The Andy Warhol Museum store carries many items, such as stationery journals, melamine barware and Bond No. 9 New York's Silver Factory fragrance and so much more. "As Warhol's critical reputation has grown over the past 20 years, requests to use the foundation's copyrights and trademarks have steadily increased," noted Hermann.

The endowment, which now exceeds $240 million, will make cash grants in excess of $11 million this year. Last year The Andy Warhol Museum benefited from a grant of $325,000 from the foundation.

As Warhol once said, "Being good in business is the most fascinating kind of art."

For more information, go to www.warholfoundation.org or visit The Andy Warhol Museum store at www.Warhol.org.

story by Patricia Sheridan