Pop artist Roy Lichtenstein mined advertisements and comics to make groundbreaking paintings that brought American pop culture into the gallery space. He undermined the distinction between painting and printing as he made canvases that looked as though they’d come from a commercial press; using paint and stencils, he meticulously rendered flat, single-color benday dots by hand. Lichtenstein introduced his detached and deadpan style in 1961 when he painted
Look Mickey, a picture of the cartoon mouse executed in primary colors. Five years later, he represented the United States at the Venice Biennale. By the 1970s, he’d already enjoyed major shows at the Pasadena Art Museum, the
Stedelijk Museum, and the
Guggenheim. Lichtenstein’s work has sold for more than $90 million at auction. His use of appropriated imagery has influenced artists such as
Richard Prince,
Jeff Koons, and
Raymond Pettibon.
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