Pop Art

Eduardo Paolozzi - I Was a Rich Man's Plaything

1947

This is one of the earliest examples of pop art. It is made from printed paper stuck onto a single piece of card. He includes a magazine cover, a World War II fighter bomber, and a small Coca-Cola advertisement. This piece was the first to include the word "pop" in it.

Richard Hamilton - Just what is it that makes today's homes so different, so appealing?

1956

Richard Hamilton is known to be the 'father' of pop art. This is one of the earliest examples of pop art that became iconic. It is a collage assembled from American magazines. He created this piece for the This is Tomorrow exhibition at the Whitechapel Art Gallery in London. This piece was also made into a poster, and Hamilton spent time typing a list of categories he planned to incorporate within the artwork including a man, a woman, food, history, and more.

Jasper Johns – Three Flags

1958

This almost 3-D painting was painted with hot wax using three canvases. Johns chose a flag because it is recognizable to the public and something that the mind already knows. However, with all that was going on in the late 1950s, it is up to the viewer to decide if it is a sign of patriotism or a symbol of oppression.

James Rosenquist - President Elect

1960

This work showed a painting of President John F. Kennedy's smiling face alongside a yellow car and a slice of cake. Rosenquist created this piece because he was interested in people who advertised themselves, and that is what JFK did. JFK was the first president to use mass media to advertise. So Rosenquist decided to put him alongside other advertisements.

Claes Oldenburg - Pastry Case, I

1961

Claes Oldenburg made many famous pop art sculptures. Pastry Case, I was one of his first pop art sculptures and was made from painted plaster. Oldenburg explained that this piece had "frustrating expectations". The audience saw the delectableness of the desserts, but they had obvious artifice and could not be eaten.

Andy Warhol - Campbell's Soup Cans

1962

Andy Warhol is one of the most famous artists in the pop art time period. This work is also known as '32 Campbell's Soup Cans' and it is synthetic polymer paint on canvas. Warhol painted one of each of the soup varieties that Cambell's offered in 1962. He had Cambell's soup every day for twenty years, which is why he decided to pay homage to the soups in a painting.

Andy Warhol - Marilyn Diptych

1962

This is another one of the most famous works of pop art. Warhol created this after Monroe's death in 1962. He made twenty silkscreen paintings of her based on a photograph. His themes for this work were death and the cult of celebrity. It shows her in bright, vivid color, and then diminishing in the black and white.

Claes Oldenburg – Floor Burger

1962

This was made out of foam rubber and cardboard boxes which were then painted. Oldenburg made this to be touched, as people like to touch hard things and soft things which this was both. He took ordinary junk food and made it into a piece of art. He said that anything can and should be art, which is true in pop art.

Roy Lichtenstein - Crying Girl

1963

This work is lithograph on lightweight, off-white wove paper. This was actually a prelude to paintings of innocent girls next door in 1964. Lichtenstein was influenced to make this piece by Picasso's depictions of crying women. He highlights a crying woman who has no dominance. This is the state of many American women in the 1960s, 'trapped' with no power.

Pauline Boty - The Only Blonde in the World

1963

Marilyn Monroe had a huge influence on pop art. The title of this work is quite ironic, because of how famous Marilyn is for that signature blonde hair. This work was oil paint on canvas. It included Marilyn Monroe squeezed between abstract forms.

Roy Lichtenstein - Whaam!

1963

This is one of the most famous works of pop art. The medium is magna acrylic and oil on canvas. It shows a fighter plane firing a rocket and hitting a plane in the second frame. His source of this work was from a war comic book, DC Comics' All-American Men of War. Comic books had a huge influence on pop art.

Wayne Thiebaud - Three Machines

1963

Thiebaud is most known for his iconic images of food. This particular work, three machines, was done by oil on canvas. Thiebaud enjoyed making people happy with his work, and a gumball machine does such the thing. He also feels as though life is like a gumbass machine, as you put things into it and don't really know what is coming out.

Campbell’s Soup Company - Souper Dress

1966

This paper dress is inspired by Warhol's "Cambell's Soup Cans." Fashion really took off during the same time as pop art, and many fashion statements were inspired by pop art. This work is a true example of life imitating art.

Andy Warhol - Exploding Plastic Inevitable

1966

Exploding Plastic Inevitable with The Velvet Underground was a series of multimedia events including concerts, screenings of Warhol's films, and dancing and performances. The event was organized by Warhol, and it was influenced by the loud flashing colors and music of the pop art movement. It touched on all parts of popular culture at the time, hence the term "pop art". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsR4ghMfq0U

Andy Warhol - Banana Dress

1966

The "paper dress" phase continued with this banana dress by Andy Warhol.

David Hockney - A Bigger Splash

1967

This acrylic on canvas painting shows a swimming pool by a house that is disturbed by a splash of water. This painting was influenced by a book that Hockney found on the basics of building a swimming pool. There is a disjointed effect to this painting, which Hockney describes is intentional.

Sir Peter Blake – Cover for Beatles’ album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

1967

Sir Peter Blake created this album cover for the Beatles, which is the most famous band of all time. This album and cover are also one of the most famous of all time. This work won a 1967 Grammy Award for Best Album Cover - Graphic Design. The image is 88 celebrities, including the band. The set was photographed, with the Beatles standing in the center, and then Sir Peter Blake went in and crafted the other figures from initial the photograph that was taken.

Allen Jones - Table

1969

This was part of a series by Jones that included Table, Chair, and Hatstand. Women were used as pieces of furniture in this series. This caused outrage from feminists who did not like how a woman was depicted in this sculpture made out of fiberglass. Protestors even threw sting bombs at Jones’ exhibition in 1978.

Keith Haring - Pop Shop 1

1987

This was the first in a series by Keith Harig. This series emerged as he opened up shops in both New York and Tokyo. The medium of this work was silkscreen print. The term "pop" in the title referred to the figurations and colors that appealed to the people.

Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen - Spoonbridge and Cherry

1988

This is one of the later examples of pop art, but one of the most out of the box. Claus Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen created many sculptures that helped monumentalize pop art. This particular sculpture is made from a stainless steel and aluminum. This piece came from Oldenburg's habit of doodling spoons. The cherry was van Bruggen’s idea, and the stem is a fountain.