939. Roy Lichtenstein (1927-1997), American,

Mr. Bellamy, 1961. Oil on canvas, 142.9 x 107 cm.

Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Fort Worth, Texas. Pop art.

 

 

Roy Lichtenstein

(1923 New York – 1997 New York)

 

Roy Lichtenstein was a prominent American pop artist whose work was heavily influenced by both popular advertising and the comic book style. Lichtenstein was born in Manhattan and attended public school until the age of twelve when he was enrolled into Manhattan’s Franklin School for Boys. Because art was not included in the curriculum, Lichtenstein became interested in art and design as an outside hobby. After three years serving in the army during World War II between 1943 and 1946 he moved to upstate New York and later adopted the Abstract Expressionist style. In 1960 the artist began teaching at Rutgers University where he began his first pop paintings using cartoon images and techniques derived from the appearance of commercial printing. His first work to feature the large scale use of hard edged figures and Ben-Day dots was Look Mickey (1961). During this same year he produced six other works with recognizable characters from gum wrappers and cartoons then in 1962 he had his first one man show held in the Castelli Gallery. Before the collection was open to the public every piece was bought by influential collectors. In his technique he used stencils to eliminate visible brush strokes and to create the appearance that his artwork was made by machine. He used vibrant colours and thick bold lines that depicted reality as it is seen through mass media and photography. His unique artistic style of using everyday ideas from commercials and advertising has made him into one of the most influential Pop artists of our time.