Roy Lichtenstein

Roy Lichtenstein was born in 1923 and lived for 73 years, he died September 2nd, 1997. Lichtenstein was a popular figure in the world of American art. He took the ideas of comic book style pictures and advertisements and was categorized as a pop artist in the 60s. Unlike other abstract expressionists, Lichtenstein designed mimicking familiar images in popular culture. Using strong, bold, bright colours distinguished black outlines and patterns similar to that of Ben Day dots, Which lead him to create large quick works of art that were uniquely his own style.



This image is called 'in the car' and was painted by Lichtenstein in 1963 and is typical of his imagery. In this image the colour in areas only uses one colour as apposed to two, three or mixed colour most modern cartoon artists use. The movement lines all go straight and are almost parallel two each other so in a way this doesn't show movement that well. This image would work on a poster, leaflet or painting on a wall. Its simplicity makes it almost look like graffiti because of the thick black lines and dotty colouration. The one main thing I like about this image is it appears like a action seen because the driver look like he's driving at high speed and is about to ask something to the passenger but she seems uninterested in him and whatever is about to happen.

Roy Lichtenstein comic style painting are well consider in American art and is as well known as the artist Andy Warhol. This was a time period of mass-produced consumer goods and also popular urban life.



When he was 38 he painted 'look Mickey' which was his first picture to employ a comic as subject matter. For a previous fifteen years he had taught at Ohio State University, the State University of New York at Oswego and also Rutgers University. In the 1950s at the time of abstract expressionism, Lichtenstein was trying to create a unique personal style for his work, although without much success. 'Look Mickey' changed that, instead of a self created style, founded by the unique expression of the artists hand, Lichtenstein went anonymously, machine-made look like industrial technical methods of mass production.
He then went on to produce more images such as the 'drowning girl' and other more lifelike comic imagery in the 1960s. Most of which used the dotty technique on large sized canvases. Later in the 70s continued these techniques and created a large amount of mirror paintings.
The main thing I like about his paintings is his unique style of action in them, and the emotion in them. I prefer the pop action things to his Disney works, Lichtenstein uses bold block colour this is why his illustrations are made so quickly done and this is also a pop artist. One of the main things I like about his paintings is the emotion in them for example his painting called 'drowning girl' shows even though she is drowning she would rather cry over some guy called brad and looks she need theory and help for sinking in the violent waves. I find the dark blue hair interesting in the painting as it emphasizes the main problem at hand.
Roy Licthenstein is a good cartoon illustrator who paints a lot of the female gender, which is the main reason I like his artwork.