Works Exhibited
About
Roy and Irving: A bad name for a ’60s folk duo, but a great name for a powerful art combo.
—Steve Martin
Gagosian is pleased to present Lichtenstein Remembered, an exhibition of sculptures and related studies by Roy Lichtenstein, curated by Irving Blum in recognition of the centenary of the artist’s birth. Organized in close collaboration with the Estate of Roy Lichtenstein and featuring an exhibition design by Bill Katz, Lichtenstein Remembered opens at 980 Madison Avenue, New York, on September 9, 2023. This is the first gallery exhibition dedicated to Lichtenstein’s sculpture since the survey presented in London and New York in 2005.
To create the miraculous drawings in space that constitute his sculptural work, Lichtenstein employed an array of visual strategies familiar from his painting and printmaking. Representing glasses, lamps, mirrors, and mobiles, as well as portrait heads and stylized explosions, he produced witty and seductive sculptures in the Pop art mode of which he was a progenitor. Referencing his adaptation of popular print media in general and comic book illustration in particular, the works on view in New York evoke the stylistic and conceptual innovations of artists including Matisse and Picasso.
Also included in Lichtenstein Remembered are drawn and painted studies that illuminate the sculptures’ conception and manufacture. Desk Explosion (1965), for instance, is a small sculpture in porcelain enamel on steel that reduces its subject to a burst of yellow and red, with the perforations in a flat sheet of white metal representing a cloud of smoke that approximates the artist’s use of the Benday dot. Desk Explosion (Study) (c. 1965) is a loose pencil sketch of the same basic form that has a jagged energy all its own. Lichtenstein turned such outlines into full-scale drawings from which an assistant, sculptor Carlos Ramos, made wooden maquettes. Tallix Foundry (now UAP) used these to produce molds, from which the sculptural editions were cast (most often in bronze), and then typically painted and patinated.
#RoyLichtenstein
Artist
Download
Press
Gagosian
press@gagosian.com
Hallie Freer
hfreer@gagosian.com
+1 212 744 2313
Polskin Arts
Meagan Jones
meagan.jones@finnpartners.com
+1 212 593 6485
Julia Esposito
julia.esposito@finnpartners.com
+1 212 715 1643
In Conversation
Irving Blum and Dorothy Lichtenstein
In celebration of the centenary of Roy Lichtenstein’s birth, Irving Blum and Dorothy Lichtenstein sat down to discuss the artist’s life and legacy, and the exhibition Lichtenstein Remembered curated by Blum at Gagosian, New York.
In Conversation
Daniel Belasco and Scott Rothkopf on Roy Lichtenstein
Gagosian and the Art Students League of New York hosted a conversation on Roy Lichtenstein with Daniel Belasco, executive director of the Al Held Foundation, and Scott Rothkopf, senior deputy director and chief curator of the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. Organized in celebration of the centenary of the artist’s birth and moderated by Alison McDonald, chief creative officer at Gagosian, the discussion highlights multiple perspectives on Lichtenstein’s decades-long career, during which he helped originate the Pop art movement. The talk coincides with Lichtenstein Remembered, curated by Irving Blum and on view at Gagosian, New York, through October 21.
Roy and Irving
Actor and art collector Steve Martin reflects on the friendship and professional partnership between Roy Lichtenstein and art dealer Irving Blum.
Donald Marron
Jacoba Urist profiles the legendary collector.
The Art History of Presidential Campaign Posters
Against the backdrop of the 2020 US presidential election, historian Hal Wert takes us through the artistic and political evolution of American campaign posters, from their origin in 1844 to the present. In an interview with Quarterly editor Gillian Jakab, Wert highlights an array of landmark posters and the artists who made them.
In Conversation
Dorothy Lichtenstein
Dorothy Lichtenstein sits down with Derek Blasberg to discuss the changes underway at the Lichtenstein Foundation, life in the 1960s, and what brought her to—and kept her in—the Hamptons.
News
In Conversation
Daniel Belasco and Scott Rothkopf on Roy Lichtenstein
Moderated by Alison McDonald
Monday, September 18, 2023, 6:30pm
Art Students League of New York
www.artstudentsleague.org
Join Gagosian and the Art Students League of New York for a conversation on Roy Lichtenstein with Daniel Belasco, executive director of Al Held Foundation, and Scott Rothkopf, senior deputy director and chief curator of the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. Organized in celebration of the centenary of the artist’s birth and moderated by Alison McDonald, chief creative officer at Gagosian, the discussion will highlight multiple perspectives on Lichtenstein’s decades-long career, during which he helped originate the Pop art movement. The talk coincides with Lichtenstein Remembered, an exhibition of sculptures and studies curated by Irving Blum at Gagosian, 980 Madison Avenue, New York, on view through October 21.
Roy Lichtenstein, Coup de Chapeau I, 1996 © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein. Photo: Rob McKeever
Tour
Lichtenstein Remembered
With Irving Blum and Dorothy Lichtenstein
Monday, September 11, 2023, 6pm
Gagosian, 980 Madison Avenue, New York
Join Gagosian for a tour of Lichtenstein Remembered at Gagosian, New York, led by legendary art dealer Irving Blum and Dorothy Lichtenstein, president of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation and widow of Roy Lichtenstein. Organized in close collaboration with the Estate of Roy Lichtenstein and featuring an exhibition design by Bill Katz, Lichtenstein Remembered features fifty sculptures and related studies by Lichtenstein, curated by Blum in recognition of the centenary of the artist’s birth.
The tour will culminate with a reception in the Gagosian Shop at 976 Madison Avenue, where the exhibition catalogue will be available for viewing and purchase. It includes a foreword by Larry Gagosian; essays by Daniel Belasco, Adam Gopnik, and Steve Martin; and a conversation between Dorothy Lichtenstein and Blum, alongside documentary and contextual photographs accompanied by quotations about Lichtenstein from fellow artists, collaborators, collectors, curators, gallerists, and friends.
Roy Lichtenstein in his studio, Columbus, Ohio, 1949. Photo: courtesy Roy Lichtenstein Foundation Archives
Honor
Roy Lichtenstein
United States Postal Service Forever Stamps
The United States Postal Service has released Forever stamps featuring iconic artwork by Roy Lichtenstein (1923–1997) in celebration of the centenary of the artist’s birth. The sheet of twenty stamps includes five different works from various series: Standing Explosion (Red) (1965), Modern Painting I (1966), Still Life with Crystal Bowl (1972), Still Life with Goldfish (1972), and Portrait of a Woman (1979).
Roy Lichtenstein United States Postal Service Forever stamps
