The Pop Object: The Still Life Tradition in Pop Art

April 10 - May 24, 2013

PREV
 / 
NEXT
Tom Wesselmann, "Still Life #34", 1963. Acrylic and collage on panel, 47 1/2 inches diameter (120.7 cm). Private Collection. Art © Estate of Tom Wesselmann / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
Roy Lichtenstein, "Still Life with Palette", 1972. Oil and Magna on canvas, 60 x 95 5/8 inches (152.4 x 242.9 cm). Acquavella Galleries. Art © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein
Andy Warhol, "Coca-Cola", 1962. Casein on cotton, 69 3/8 x 54 inches (17 6.2 x 137.2 cm). Private Collection. Art © 2013 The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Marjorie Strider, "Red' Roses", 1962. Carved wood over Masonite panel painted over with acrylic, 63 x 41 7/8 x 7 inches. Courtesy of Hollis Taggart Galleries.
James Rosenquist, "Orange Field", 1964. Oil on canvas, 32 x 36 inches (81.3 x 91.4 cm). Private Collection. Art © James Rosenquist / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
Wayne Thiebaud, "Gumball Machine", 1977
Gouache and pastel on paper
24 x 17 3/4 inches (61 x 45.1 cm)
Courtesy of Gretchen and John Berggruen, San Francisco
Art © Wayne Thiebaud / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY
John Wesley, "Suitcase", 1964-65
Oil on canvas and leather suitcase
14 1/2 x 18 1/2 x 6 1/2 inches (36.8 x 47 x 16.5 cm)
Private Collection, New York
Art © John Wesley
Tom Wesselmann, "Smoker #3 (Mouth #17), 1968
Oil on shaped canvas
71 1/2 x 67 inches (181.6 x 170.2 cm)
Courtesy The Estate of Tom Wesselmann
Art © Estate of Tom Wesselmann / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

Press Release


The Pop Object: The Still Life Tradition in Pop Art

April 10 - May 24, 2013

The Pop Object: The Still Life Tradition in Pop Art at Acquavella Galleries

(NEW YORK, NY) Acquavella Galleries is pleased to announce The Pop Object: The Still Life Tradition in Pop Art on view from April 10th to May 24th, 2013. Curated by renowned art historian John Wilmerding, the Pop art survey will include over 75 important works by Robert Arneson, Vija Celmins, Jim Dine, Robert Indiana, Jasper Johns, Alex Katz, Edward Kienholz, Jeff Koons, Roy Lichtenstein, Marisol, Claes Oldenburg, Ed Ruscha, Robert Rauschenberg, Larry Rivers, James Rosenquist, George Segal, Marjorie Strider, Wayne Thiebaud, Andy Warhol, John Wesley, Tom Wesselmann, and H.C. Westermann. In addition to significant loans from prestigious private collections and institutions such as the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, The Museum of Modern Art in New York and The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, the exhibition will include seminal work from several of the artists’ personal collections.

The central focus of the exhibition is the development of Pop art in the United States and still life’s role in the context of Pop. “Still life also has long been treated as a minor preoccupation for artists, yet has turned out to be the occasion for some of Pop’s most innovative and witty expressions,” said Wilmerding. Each featured artist views the still life as an important vehicle of expression in capturing themes of contemporary life reflective of a post-war consumerist society. Though Pop artists did not consider themselves as being a part of a unified movement, the still life object has been of shared interest to both canonical Pop artists and lesser-known artists. Two major innovative ideas will be explored in the exhibition: the expansion of still life beyond painting into multidimensional sculptural forms, and the presentation of a variety of new media as modes of expression. To achieve
this, Wilmerding has organized the exhibition into four major themes: food and drink, the garden, body parts, and clothing and housewares. For example, Tom Wesselmann’s laser-cut steel drawings of flower bouquets are presented alongside Roy Lichtenstein’s graphic black flowers in oil on canvas. The juxtaposition reveals the various pioneering styles and techniques each artist employed while paying homage to earlier traditions of painting.

John Wilmerding is the Sarofim Professor of American Art, Emeritus, at Princeton University. He has written more than twenty books on American art and artists, including most recently monographs and catalogues on Tom Wesselmann, Robert Indiana, Roy Lichtenstein and George Segal. The fully illustrated catalogue The Pop Object: The Still Life Tradition in Pop Art will be co-distributed and published by
Rizzoli and will contain a forward by William R. Acquavella and an essay by curator John Wilmerding.

For more information please contact Prentice Art Communications
(212) 228-4048 or Danielle@PrenticeArt.com


Download Press Release  PDF (2.7 MB)

Selected Press


ARTNews  Review of "The Pop Object: The Still Life Tradition in Pop Art"  October 2013   PDF (340 K)
The Millbrook Independent  Pop art to brighten your day at Acquavella  May 7, 2013   PDF (418 K)
The New York Times  Review of "The Pop Object: The Still Life Tradition in Pop Art"  May 10, 2013   PDF (57 K)
PBS Thirteen NYC-ARTS Video: At the Acquavella Galleries  http://watch.thirteen.org/video/2365001669
The New York Observer  Review of The Pop Object: The Still Life Tradition in Pop Art  April 29, 2013   PDF (492 K)
Bloomberg  Million-Dollar Still Lifes by Pop Artists: Uptown Art  April 20, 2013   PDF (111 K)
Time Out New York  Critics' picks  April 18, 2013   PDF (411 K)
Interview Magazine  Pop Art, Still  April 10, 2013   PDF (283 K)
Du jour  This Week in Culture  April 10, 2013   PDF (0.9 MB)
The Huffington Post  The Pop Object: New Book and Exhibit Explores the Still Life Tradition of Pop Art  April 10, 2013   PDF (2.9 MB)
Vogue  First Things First: "The Pop Object" Show at Acquavella Galleries  April 5, 2013   PDF (104 K)
Modern Painters  Hit List  April 2013   PDF (1.8 MB)
DETAILS  The Last Word on Pop Art  April 2013   PDF (1.1 MB)
Guest of a Guest  Everything You Need To Know This Week On New York's Art Scene  March 6, 2013   PDF (313 K)
Works in Exhibition  Checklist  April 10 - May 24, 2013   PDF (12.6 MB)

More Info


Jasper Johns
Roy Lichtenstein  Artist Page  View
Claes Oldenburg  Artist Page  View
Robert Rauschenberg
James Rosenquist  Artist Page  View
Ed Ruscha  Artist Page  View
Andy Warhol  Artist Page  View
Tom Wesselmann  Artist Page  View

Catalogues


The Pop Object: The Still Life Tradition in Pop Art  View
Download PDF  (2.7 MB)

Acquavella Galleries


Acquavella Galleries, Inc.
18 East 79th Street (between Madison and Fifth Avenues)
New York, NY 10075
212-734-6300 Phone
212-794-9394 Fax