The late Andy Warhol, the legendary pop artist who immortalized everyday items like Campbell's soup cans and Coca-Cola bottles, is having his 15 minutes of fame extended with the local opening of a children's art exhibit devoted to his artwork.

POP Art: The Andy Warhol Studio, a national traveling exhibit created by the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh, is now on display at Young at Art Children's Museum in Davie.

``People say `Warhol for kids?' But Warhol was very childlike,'' said Sandra Trinidad, marketing director for Young at Art. ``All of his artwork was very colorful, just like what kids do.''

The exhibit, which will be open through Jan. 10, was inspired by Warhol's depictions of iconic subjects ranging from Mickey Mouse to the Wicked Witch of the West from the The Wizard of Oz. The exhibit is all about the whimsical side of the American artist.

Born in Pennsylvania in 1928, Warhol worked in New York City as an illustrator for magazines, books and newspapers early in his career.

But it was his work in the 1960s as a painter in his studio, dubbed ``The Factory,'' that elevated him to pop art fame. He died in 1987.

Warhol's most famous works include repetitive images of celebrities such as Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley and of mundane items like dance diagrams and handle-with-care glass stickers.

The children's exhibit is divided into four sections: The Gallery, which has seven interactive art stations; The Factory, which includes books and videos about Warhol's life; The Studio, site of Warhol-inspired art workshops; and 15 Minutes of Fame, a dress-up and play-acting site.

GETTING CREATIVE

In The Gallery, children have the opportunity to engage in creative activities based on Warhol's work. ``That's what's fun about Warhol for kids,'' Trinidad said. ``It's things they can relate to.''

There are plenty of kid-friendly images in the Toy Series Warhol painted in 1983. Children can use an Etch-a-Sketch to create a still-life drawing of an assortment of toys at the center of the display. The money-stamping area pays tribute to one of Warhol's earliest print subjects: the dollar bill.

``When [Warhol] started painting, friends told him `You should paint what you like,' and he said `I like money,' '' Trinidad said.

Sarah Marks, 5, of Pembroke Pines, dug through a bin filled with bits of fabric and ribbons in a ``myth costumes'' section dedicated to the imaginary characters that Warhol so loved, Trinidad said.

``In the portrait studio, kids can do a series of rubbings using raised blocks to make a self-portrait. Andy Warhol did a lot of self-portraits,'' Trinidad said.

Stacks of empty Campbell's soup cans, cereal boxes and other food items are turned into building blocks for kids to stack, sort and count in one area.

In the shimmery Factory part of the exhibit, Anderson Albury, 4, of Sunrise happily tossed silver balloons in the air, just as visitors to Warhol's Factory likely did with the large silver balloons he kept in his studio, Trinidad said.

Sue Aguilera, outreach coordinator and museum educator, conducts a silk-screen printing workshop in The Studio portion to acquaint young visitors with one of Warhol's favorite mediums. The half-hour workshops are held weekdays at 11 a.m., 2 and 4 p.m.

Roberto Perera of Miami and his son, Antonio, 8, carefully cut and tore bits of paper to make a stencil for their own screen print. Aguilera showed Antonio how to ink the screen by carefully pulling a squeegee over the paper.

`WONDERFUL OASIS'

``This is a wonderful oasis in the middle of the chaos of the city,'' Roberto Perera said. ``It's a place where you can build a relationship with your child.''

In the 15 Minutes of Fame display, a nod to the phrase Warhol coined, children can ham it up in front of a video screen, dress in costumes or peek through cutouts depicting Warhol, Marilyn Monroe, even a banana, one of Warhol's favorite subjects.

``If Andy Warhol were alive today,'' Trinidad said, ``he would be fascinated with people like Paris Hilton, people who got their 15 minutes of fame for no other reason than being a celebrity.''

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