§ Quantized History #7

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June 11, 2008 » Roy Lichtenstein: The Painter Who Adored Women

Roberta Smith [NYT] writes: “Roy Lichtenstein: Girls,” at the Gagosian Gallery, presents 12 of Lichtenstein’s early paintings of the female creatures otherwise known as women. Based on cartoons, and mostly blond, they are anonymous, beautiful, and often unhappily bothered, usually by men. Or, if you like, by boys.

Roy Lichtenstein at Gagosian [SLIDESHOW]

• “Forget It! Forget Me!” (1962): “Roy Lichtenstein: Girls,” at the Gagosian Gallery, presents 12 of Lichtenstein’s early paintings.
• “Girl in Mirror” (1964): Lichtenstein’s portrayals in some way glorify the American woman.
• “Sound of Music”: Clearly Julie Andrews.
• “Happy Tears” (1964): Hot flashes of composition.
• “Blond Waiting”: Angie Dickinson?
• “Little Aloha”: One of Lichtenstein’s few non-blonds.
• “Kiss V”: Mainly, white is filtered through the scrims of Ben-Day dots.
• “Masterpiece”: Dots are faint and uneven.
• “Head With Red Shadow”: Tattoo-like scattering of Ben-Day dots.
• “Girl at Piano” (1963): Lichtenstein’s work functions as a kind of primer in looking at and understanding the grand fiction of painting.