The Whaam! painting by
Roy Lichtenstein is a seminal work of the Pop Art movement, created in 1963. This diptych painting has become an iconic representation of American Pop Art and one of Lichtenstein's most important works.
Description
The left-hand panel shows a fighter plane firing a rocket that, in the right-hand panel, hits a second plane which explodes in flames. Lichtenstein adapted the image from several comic-book panels, with the primary source being a panel illustrated by
Irv Novick from a 1962 war comic book. The painting's title is integral to the action and impact of the painting, and displayed in large onomatopoeia in the right panel.
Artistic Context
Lichtenstein studied as an artist before and after serving in the United States Army during World War II. He practiced anti-aircraft drills during basic training, and he was sent for pilot training but the program was canceled before it started. Among the topics he tackled after the war were romance and war. Lichtenstein depicted aerial combat in several works. Whaam! is part of a series on war that he worked on between 1962 and 1964, and along with
As I Opened Fire (1964) is one of his two large war-themed paintings.
Conservation
The diptych took one month to produce from start to finish. To make the final painting, Lichtenstein projected the preparatory study onto the two pre-primed canvases and drew around the projection in pencil before applying the Ben-Day dots. This involved using a homemade aluminum mesh and pushing oil paint through the holes with a small scrubbing brush.
Further Reading
For more information about
Roy Lichtenstein and his work, please visit our dedicated page: https://ArtsDot.com/@/RoyLichtenstein. To learn more about pop art, you can consult our article on the topic: https://ArtsDot.com/ADC/Art.nsf/All-Popular-Artworks#Pop_art. The
Tate Modern also has an extensive collection of Lichtenstein's works, including Whaam!, which can be found on their website: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/lichtenstein-whaam-t00897.
The significance of
Pop Art and its influence on contemporary art practices can be explored further through the Wikipedia article on the topic: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whaam!.
- https://ArtsDot.com/ADC/Art.nsf/All-Popular-Artworks#Pop_art
- https://ArtsDot.com/@/RoyLichtenstein
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whaam!