Roy Lichtenstein

"From the beginning, I felt that comic-strip painting had to be DE-personalized. It had to express great emotions – passion, fear, violence – in an impersonal, removed and mechanical manner" -Roy Lichtenstein

Roy Fox Lichtenstein an American pop artist was one of the first artists to achieve fame on a large scale that made him one of contemporary art’s most challenging figures, by merging his own style of high art with popular imagery he left a mark in the world of arts, and he is considered to be the most sophisticated pop artist around even after his death, he is still an icon in pop art. 

Name:Roy Lichtenstein

Nationality: American

Date of Birth: Oct 27, 1923

Date of Death: Sep 29, 1997

Profession: Artist

Roy Lichtenstein’s career as an artist started in 1951. In the mid 1950’s his pop art appeared in England soon after in America, it continued to expand and grow in both countries through the 1960’s. He started in painting cowboys and Indians in diverse modern art styles. Later on in 1957 he tried to develop his work into abstract expressionism, but then after discovering cartoons, they became his inspiration and the source material for his art.
His work was influenced by comic strips, in which he

reproduced original cartoon characters into his own work using the same technique of Ben Day dots, Roy used bold primary colors to define his personal style, in which critics were impressed by his ability to take all visual sources and other artist’s work and transform them into his own work. Such evaluations were advanced by Calvin Tomkins, who remarked in 1996, “For more than thirty years, Roy Lichtenstein has been processing other art into Lichtensteins. Cézanne, Mondrian, Picasso, Monet, Art Deco, Surrealism, German Expressionism, Purism, Cubism, Futurism, American Indian art, and quite a few other styles have gone into the magic meat grinder of this sovereign ironist and come out looking recognizable but different – so Lichtensteinian that your take on the originals is permanently altered.” (RL: inside/outside, 2001, p: 11). Yet some critics challenged his work’s originality, Lichtenstein responded to those critics’ claims, saying "The closer my work is to the original, the more threatening and critical the content. However, my work is entirely transformed in that my purpose and perception are entirely different. I think my paintings are critically transformed, but it would be difficult to prove it by any rational line of argument"

Woman with Flowered Hat by Roy Lichtenstein, magna on canvas, 1963, 1923-1997, Private Collection

Roy Lichtenstein reproduction Girl With Hair Ribbon oil paintings

Lichtenstein’s first use of Ben Day dots was in his large scale work Look Mickey (1961) that was a result of a challenge from one of his sons.

 Look Mickey, (1961)

Oil on canvas ( 48 x 69 inches )

A video about Roy Lichtenstein. 

"I try to look for something that says something mysterious, or absurd, or obvious or extremely simple or extremely complicated. Something visually or if there are words to it – something that when it’s a painting and not a part of a comic strip that it will strike you as funny…or…usually funny.  ……….. It’s the drama and heroics and of course, none of the consequences – we still think of war that way."
-Roy Lichtenstein; explaining why he chose comic frames for his artwork.

The majority of Lichtenstein’s work was made by stencils, therefore creating rows of over-sized dots, in result his paintings/prints would look like a huge mass publication product. He carefully prepared and executed his work; nevertheless he wanted to make his work look like it was machine made. one of his several particularities was that he hid his brushstrokes so they could not be seen.

In addition, Lithographs, screen prints, etchings, and woodcuts were some of the many techniques the artist used to produce a number of prints, and he often combined these techniques in a single print.

 Made of steel and painted an electrifying blue, Modern Head was conceived by the artist in 1974, but fabricated about fifteen years later. It was part of a series Lichtenstein began in the 1960s in which human figures are deliberately made to resemble machines. Looking at Modern Head one can see the abstract geometric forms, precision, and flat planes associated with Art Deco architecture of the 1930s.

 

 

Beginning in 1962 Lichtenstein borrowed images of explosions from popular war comics for use in his paintings. The subject embodies the revolutionary nature of Pop art and suggests the very real threat of annihilation by nuclear explosion that was prevalent at that time (the Cuban Missile Crisis occurred in 1962). But Lichtenstein was also interested in the way dynamic events like explosions were depicted in the format of comic book illustration. This print incorporates many of the hallmastylised rks of his early painting style: flat primary colours, Benday dots, outlines and schematic drawing

 Roy Lichtenstein reproduction Red Barn II, 1969 oil paintings

  

Roy Lichtenstein and the Pop art movement

The pop art movement began in the early 1960’s, when Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, James Rosenquist, and Jim Dim who worked independently of one another, together started painting, influenced by comic strips, commercial printing, and advertisement, the subject matter, commercial graphic designer techniques and references to mass production were dominant features of work by such artists as And Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, James Rosenruist and Jim Dim, whom critics, curators and art dealers quickly grouped together representing a new art movement. (RL: inside/outside, 2001, p: 10). Pop was the name given to this movement by the British critic Lawrence Alloway, and the name stuck to the categorization of these artists. Roy Lichtenstein a founding member of the pop art movement, played an important role in it, his art encapsulated the point of Pop Art and influenced modern art by leading the movement.

His most known work

Undoubtedly, “Whaam!”(1963) is the most famous creation of Roy Lichtenstein, it is an early example of pop art. This painting was based on a comic-book picture from 'All American Men of War,' published by DC comics in 1962. This inspired painting features a fighter’s Military aircraft, firing a rocket towards his enemy plane, adding a dazzling yellow and red explosion to it. The onomatopoeic word “Whaam!” along with the caption saying, “I pressed the fire control... and ahead of me rockets blazed through the sky...” has added some interest in the painting.

On the other hand, drowning girl is also one of the most famous paintings of Lichtenstein, in which a young pretty woman’s head surrounded by turbulent waves, with a caption that says “I don’t care! I’d rather sink...Than call brad for help!” This appears to be a dramatic painting, where she prefers dying because of maybe her dignity. The painting features thick outlines, bold colors and Ben Day dots to represent certain colors, as if created by photogenic reproduction.

These two paintings publicly admit the issue between the female and male equality in the war, as well as the romantic paintings. It compares the masculinity and femininity of each gender and defines the role of both sexes.

In conclusion, Lichtenstein was indeed a great pop artist, having such an ability to transform famous, great artworks into a totally different kind of great art, which is an amusement to the sight and soul. Comic books and advertisements were his number one inspirations. As an American artist, Lichtenstein has achieved a lot in his life, and even after his death, his achievements are still affecting people nowadays.

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Bibliography:-

Books:

Lanchner, C. (2009). Roy Lichtenstein. Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.) 
Clearwater, B. (2001). Roy Lichtenstein: Inside/Outside. Museum of Contemporary Art.
Lehman,J.
Hickey, D.(2001). Roy Lichtenstein Brushstrokes: Four Decades. New York. Mitchell-Innes & Nash NY.

Electronic Publications.:

- Art Factory. (n.d). April, 12. http://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/art_movements/pop_art.htm

- Art Talk. (n.d). April, 12. http://www.arttalk.com/archives/vol-08/artv0801-1.htm

- Busche, E.A. (n.d). Moma. April, 11. http://www.moma.org/collection/artist.php?artist_id=3542

- Labedzki, A. (n.d). Ezine Articles. April, 12.  http://ezinearticles.com/?His-Most-Famous-Painting-(Whaam!)---Roy-Lichtenstein&id=2595879