Pop-artist James Rosenquist dies aged 83
Monday, April 3, 2017
Well-known pop art figure James Rosenquist died on Friday, his family announced, in his New York City home after a long illness, at the age of 83.
Image: Russ Blaise.
Mr Rosenquist leaves behind a legacy of involvement in the pop art movement, playing a pivotal role in the movement's conception in the 1960s. His career as a heyday pop-artist was defined by his billboard painting style which incorporated subject matter from popular culture and the mass media and created large scale artworks.
Although his works were rarely politically charged, his best-known work, the 1964/1965 F-111, used a combination of war imagery and everyday influences to protest US militarism in relation to the Vietnam War. It now resides in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.
The 1960s pop art movement was defined by artists like Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein, contemporaries of Mr. Rosenquist. Although part of the same art movement, Rosenquist wrote in his 2009 autobiography, Painting Below Zero: Notes on a Life in Art, that he was less interested in "logos or brand names", and more concerned with creating what he described as "mysterious pictures".
Sources
- Martin Pengelly. "James Rosenquist, pop artist who painted the famous F-111, dies ages 83" — The Guardian, April 2, 2017
- Ken Johnson. "James Rosenquist, Pop Art Pioneer, Dies at 83" — The New York Times, April 1, 2017
