Roy Lichtenstein Pop Art Analysis

Pop art is an art movement based on modern culture. It became popular in the mid- 1950s although it has been explored in different countries at different times. Some visual characters of pop art include: Repetition, commercial design, bright/vibrant primary colours, and ordinary objects made extraordinary. Pop are is usally based on food, super hero’s and house hold items tat are displayed using art mediums. Pop art was used to bridge the gap between the high and low act culture and was first know for being weird or strange.
Artist Roy Lichtenstein was born in New York City in 1923. As a young boy Lichtenstein had a passion for science and comic books. In his mid- teens he found interest in art. He often took art classes as a teen and in

the 1940’s he exhibited his art nationwide. Some common features of his art include: Ben Day dot, bold colours (Red, Yellow, Blues, Whites & Blacks), Bold outlines, speech bubbles and words/quotes. Lichtenstein became famous for his use of a wide variety of art mediums. When he first released his art work the public though of it as weird or strange as it didn’t fit into the art movement of that time and also that it had no emotion.
Roy Lichtenstein created Whaam! in 1963. Whaam! Was a 170cm X 400cm long linear diptych and was painted using Manga acrylic and oil on canvas. On the left of the canvas there is a American fighting plane that is traveling towards another plane that is blowing up with red and yellow flames around it.
Whaam!

Uses a wide variety of primary colours including red, blue, yellow, white and black with the bend day dot technique to create and illusion of other colours in the painting. An example of this is on the plane when Lichtenstein uses reds and blues to create a grey effect. Lichtenstein also uses a black outline around most objects in the artwork including the plane, explosion, smoke and fire. Whaam! uses both Geometric and organic shapes. The primary shapes are shown in the fire and smoke. The primary shapes are lively, erratic, flickering, random and explosive. The geometric shapes are used in the plane to show that it is man made and also on the star symbol. They are both sharp and smooth. The composition of the artwork is symmetrical and the artwork is evenly balanced on both sides. The most prominent contrast of the artwork is the black and white and these colours are also used to outline the shapes. The last principle is the movement and rhythm, the missile is used to show direction of line and the flame appears like its flickering and dancing die to the irregular shape and variation of colour.
Comics inspired Lichtenstein; the most prominent comic is US Comic DC ‘All American men of war’. He was also inspired by melodrama and clichéd gender roles.
I believe the meaning of the artwork was to show how us mend are expected to behave in society during the 1950’s to 1960’s. They are expected to be patriotic and brave. I believe this as ‘All American men of war’ and also

how the word ‘whaam’ is placed inspired Lichtenstein
I believe the artwork was successful at displaying how men should act, as the plane is not flying away from the explosion and it shows that they have no fear. The use of red, yellows and blues show what society may view as manly colours.