Designed for the Arts and Technology High School American Art History Class.

1. The birth of POP!
Happy Days, Baby BOOMS and
consumer culture.

2. Early POP!
• Artists began to move away from concepts
addressed by Abstract Expressionists about
the inner struggle of the self.
• Instead, they began to look out into the everchanging landscape in which they lived for
inspiration.
• At this time the world was flooded with
consumer goods, new imagery and a new way
of life.

3. Jasper Johns
• 1954 he destroyed all of his prior work.
• He worked as a bookseller in NY and also
worked closely with Robert Rauschenburg
decorating the window displays and walls of
Tiffany Co.
• He then painted “Flag”

5. Flag Detail and Purpose:
This painting is used with a
medium called encaustic.
It is a heated wax mixed with
pigment that is layered up to
create a translucent texture.
He did not only include
pigment/paint but layers of
magazines and newspaper
clippings from around his
studio.
MEANING:
Johns began to turn to images
that already existed in the
world, there was no need to
invent new imagery when
bombarded by so many each
day.
Johh’s removed an ordinary object from his experience
and attempted to empty it of historical significance,
recreating it in paint through the art of painting.
We can recognize the image and know what it means
but at the same time see that it was painted.

6. Early Robert Rauschenberg
Began to incorporate found
objects into his work.
Collage or assemblage.
This is significant because it
allows artists to have a
variety of new materials to
work with.

7. Found objects and brought cheap mass produced
materials were elevated to High ART status!

8. Richard Hamilton the Father of POP
ART.
Pop art is: popular, transient, expendable, low-cost,
mass produced, young, witty, sexy, gimmicky,
glamorous and BIG Business.

10. ‘Just What Makes Todays Homes So
Different, So Appealing?”
• Consumption of Mass Media
• A new concentrated form of ironic picture of the
postmodern Society.
• Adam and Eve “Interior”
• Symbols of American Life
• Reflects the economic and social dreams of the
American People.
• POP!= Adams Fig leaf and the start of a
movement.

11. Tom Wessleman

12. Screwed in coke bottles
Painted fruit and patterns,
Clippings from magazines.
In edible, almost toxic and
Falling into your lap.
Composition.
“with collage you can use anything and that
Adds variety.”

13. Early Andy Warhol

14. Warhol
•
•
•
•
Began as a fashion illustrator SHOES
Commercial artist, first
Images were of comic strips
In NY department stores.
• Created a new kind of still life

16. Displayed as they would
Be at a grocery store
Each hand painted with
Not trace of expressive
Gesture or individuality
Converted into a HEROIC
Scale. Larger than life, but
from life.
Used serial repetition to
Question the traditional
concept of originality and
somehow managed to turn
an everyday item into a
collectors item.
Commenting on the Automation and Dehumanizing of
modern society and consistently denying any claim to
originality.
Confused the boundaries of mass art and High culture while challenging the
Conventions of museum and gallery settings.

17. Roy Lichtenstein

19. James Rosenquist

24. Later Rauschenberg

25. WARHOL
“Making
money is
art and
working is
art and
good
business is
the best
art.”

26. Film, Fame and Death

27. The blurring
made the
images feel
like a movie
reel and
hinted at the
passing
nature of
time and
fame.

29. “People sometimes say that
the way things happen in
the movies is unreal, but
actually, it’s the way things
happen to you in life that’s
unreal. The movies make
emotions look strong and
real, whereas when things
really do happen to you, it’s
like you’re watching
television — you don’t feel
anything.”

34. “In the
future,
Everyone
will be
famous for
15
minutes.”