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Home , Brushstroke, Brushstrokes, Drowning Girl, Men of War (comics), Roy Lichtenstein

with The Studiowith ART HIST RY KIDS

LET’S MEET THE ARTIST Roy Fox Lichtenstein (October 27, 1923 – September 29, 1997) Roy Lichtenstein was born into a normal New York family on October 27, 1923. His father was a real estate broker, and his mom (a classically trained pianist) stayed home with Roy and his sister Renee. The three of them took advantage of the rich art scene in New York– visiting museums and attending concerts often. Early on, Roy showed artistic talent. He played clarinet and piano, and he loved to sculpt, draw and paint. As a boy, he decided that he would become an artist, and that’s just what he did. He studied art in school and became a regular at the Museum of where he could admire the finest masterpieces in the world. His favorite was Picasso’s Guarnica (which was visiting New York on a long-term loan). Lichtenstein became an art professor and contin- ued to work on his own paintings. In the early 1960’s, he began experimenting with his now signature style of comic-book inspired art, and it quickly took off. His work was featured in museum and gallery shows around the country and he became a household name in the art world. Roy Lichtenstein is one of the founding members of the Pop Art movement, and he continued to explore his innovative style of art for the next 35 years. Photo Credit: Bill Ray

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ART MOVEMENTS

What is Pop Art? To understand Pop Art, we need to understand what else was happening at the time. During the 1950’s, artists were making a lot of abstract art. Abstract Expressionists were splashing and pouring paint on canvases and making art that expressed feelings rather than images.

Then Pop Art came along. Pop Art had nothing to do with feelings, and everything to do with the every day objects , Number 28, 1950 that surround us. (Even the name Pop Art describes what it is– Pop is short for Popular.) painted soup Pop Art cans... lots of them! Claus Oldenberg made oversize sculptures of fast food hamburgers. And Roy Lichtenstein showed us images from comic books and newspaper ads. People argued that this wasn’t art. But over time, most people have come to agree that it is.

Why?

Because one of the most important jobs an artist does is Andy Warhol, Campbell’s Soup Cans, 1962 to show the people of the world a reflection of their soci- ety. Pop Art was a perfect reflection of the time. The world was shiny and bright. Consumerism was booming– everyone wanted the newest version of everything. Pop Art explores the idea of bringing normal life into the realm of fine art. It asks us to consider the things that are important to us as a society. It makes us think about questions like: ‘Is this art?’ and “If it is, why is this art?’ Claes Oldenburg, Floor Burger, 1962

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DISCOVER MORE ABOUT THE ART in art Throughout his art career, Lichtenstein became a master of parody.

Parody is a device used by painters, musician, writers, and others, where they deliberately imitate something or someone in order to achieve a humorous or thought provoking effect in their work.

So, when Lichtenstein used images of Micky Mouse, or recreated ads from the newspaper, or made a cubist – these are all examples of parody. He’s using images that are instantly recognizable to people in mainstream society, but he’s using them with a humorous twist in order to share his ideas about them. “The things I have apparently parodied I actually admire.”

Lichtenstein made dozens of paintings that reference famous works of art– like this one inspired by Monet’s Water Lilies.

Water Lily Pond with Reflections, 1992

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DISCOVER MORE ABOUT THE ART in art When an artist takes an image that someone was inspired else created, and they use it in their own work, by the 1962 this is called appropriation. DC Comics Secret Hearts cover, issue There’s a really fine line between appropriation #83, Run for and copying. Copying (or plagiarizing some- Love! illus- one else’s work) is usually something to avoid. trated by Tony Abruzzov. It could get you in trouble with the original artist. But appropriation is usually ok because the artist is using an image as a starting point, Lichtenstein referenced but then changing enough to make it different. the com- ic-book panel The lines between appropriation and plagia- drawn by in a rism can be very grey and very blurry. It’s not 1962 issue of always easy to tell which is which. In order for DC Comics’ artists to make social commentary about pop All-American as culture, they need to use images that main- the source for stream society will recognize... and so they Whaam! take their chances and use these images in their art.

A book called ‘Deconstructing Roy Lichten- stein’ compares many of Lichtenstein’s paint- ings to their original comic book sources to illustrate how much was directly copied, and how much the artist changed.

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DISCOVER MORE ABOUT THE ART Lichtenstein’s Art Process and Technique Roy Lichtenstein created his art in a very particular way in order to make his art look like it was printed by a machine and not painted by a person. Roy was a perfectionist, and he used special tools and techniques to make his art look perfect, too.

He would always begin with sketches, and he would revise and redo his sketches using tracing paper. Once he had his composition just right, Roy would use a projector to put his sketch onto a big canvas. Roy used magna paint because it gave him a smooth even finish, and he would varnish the paint between each layer.

To make straight lines, Roy used big rulers and triangles with straight edges. Sometimes he would use special removable tape to make straight lines in his art. He had custom metal grids of dots made, and he used these to map out the Ben Day dots that are the iconic trademark style we associate with his paintings.

What are Ben Day dots?

The dot pattern Roy Lichtenstein used in his art to make his paint- ings look like printed ads and comics has a name... and a pretty interesting history. These are called Ben Day dots, and they are named after an illustrator and printer Benjamin Henry Day, Jr.

Benjamin Day discovered that if you printed little dots of a color in certain ways - with just the right amount of space around them, you could inexpensively achieve a shaded effect in the printed imagery (without having to use a full spectrum of colored ink).

This printing method was commonly used in mass produced printings (like comic books and newspapers), and when Lichten- stein included Ben Day dots in his art, he made them larger than they normally would be to exaggerate and emphasize that he was including them on purpose. This photo shows how Lichtenstein (that’s his hand!) transfered the dots onto his canvas.

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LOOKING CLOSER AT THE ART Art Analysis: How to look at Lichtenstein paintings

Narrative– is there an obvious story Balance– look at the way that you can see when you look at things are arranged. Is the art? What is the main story there a sense of balance? that Lichtenstein is telling in this Is the painting symmetrical? painting? Or is there balance without symmetry? Shape– look for Meaning– what images do you see? shapes. Dots, What do you think they mean? Can lines, solid blocks you think of any hidden meanings of color. How do that may be secondary to the these shapes obvious images? all work together?

Words– are there words in the art? Line- take a look Are the words describing an action at the line quality. or are they dialogue between Are the lines characters in the painting? How do straight and the words help to tell the story? predictable, or What is the tone of the language? are they organic and fluid? How do the lines compliment the Composition– take a look at the art overall? overall composition. Is it linear, are things going across the canvas in a straight line? Or is it diagonal? Color– what colors do you see? How does your eye travel around How do the colors add to the art the image? Where does it start, or help Lichtenstein to tell a and where does it go next? story?

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LOOKING CLOSER AT THE ART Art Analysis: Masterpiece

Lichtenstein said he used the name Brad in his art because it sounded both heroic and cliche. (You may remember Brad was used in Drowning Girl as well.)

This is one of Lichtenstein’s earliest paintings that became really famous. In a way it predicted his own fame as an artist.

This is one of the earlier works where Lichtenstein was still perfecting his Ben Day dot technique. In this painting they aren’t as evenly spaced or as bold as they would later become.

Masterpiece is one of the most expen- sive paintings ever sold. In 2017, it sold for $165 million! $100 million of the sale price went to support the charity ‘Art For Justice Fund.’

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LOOKING CLOSER AT THE ART Art Analysis: WHAAM!

This painting is made up of two canvas panels (also known as a diptych).

Lichtenstein based the painting on a comic drawn by Irv Novick which appeared in issue number 89 of All-American Men of War, published by DC Comics in February 1962.

He said: ‘I am nominally copying, but I am really restating the copied thing in other terms. In doing You can see in this sketch how Lichtenstein arrang- that, the original acquires a totally different texture.’ es his composition and plans out his painting. Look at the letters of the word WHAAM! and you can see At the time Lichtenstein painted this, he was he’s labeled them with ideas for colors. It looks like obsessed with the idea of showing extreme condi- tions and emotions - war, love, hate – in a detached he changed his mind and decided to make the and unemotional way. He wanted to highlight the letters yellow in stead of white. contrast between every day images from pop culture and high brow fine art.

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LOOKING CLOSER AT THE ART Art Analysis:

Lichtenstein created a whole series of Brushstrokes paintings and sculptures.

The funny thing about these paintings is how careful Lichtenstein is to keep us from seeing his own brushstrokes in his art.

Normally in paintings, an artist’s carries with it the energy and emotion they brought to their art as they created each stroke of paint. This is especially true of Abstract Expressionist art that was really popular the time Lichtenstein painted these. Ironically, Lichtenstein is depersonalizing the brushstroke altogether as he simplifies the brushstrokes and eliminates any sense of the artist who made the marks.

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NOW IT’S YOUR TURN...

Let’s look at ‘Still Life with Lemon and Glass’ as we create our art this week. Set up a simple still life (the simpler the better) and then paint or draw it using Lichtenstein’s graphic and bold style!

See how much information you can take away. Use lines and dots to show surfaces. Simplify your color palette!

Challenge yourself to think the way Lichtenstein would think when he created his art!

1. Choose your subject What will you use for your still life set up? Keep it simple. One piece of fruit and one other object – the glass is interesting because you can see through it. 2. Choose your medium Will you paint, draw with markers or colored Consider this: pencils, or do something different? Something to consider as you make your art... 3. Create your art Remember to think about the way Lichtenstein Think about using a limited color worked... will you use a ruler or other tools? palette for maximum impact. Can you draw or paint your still life using 4. Share your masterpiece only black and one color the way Post a photo in our facebook group, or email it Lichtenstein did in this painting? to [email protected] so I can feature your art in the online gallery!

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