''Masterpiece'' is a 1962 pop art painting by Roy Lichtenstein that uses his classic Ben-Day dots and narrative content contained within a speech balloon. In 2017 the painting sold for $165 million.

Background

According to the Lichtenstein Foundation website, ''Masterpiece'' was part of Lichtenstein's first exhibition at

Ferus Gallery The Ferus Gallery was a contemporary art gallery which operated from 1957 to 1966. In 1957, the gallery was located at 736-A North La Cienega Boulevard, Los Angeles, California. In 1958, it was relocated across the street to 723 North La Cienega ...

in Los Angeles from April 1 – April 27, 1963, featuring '' Drowning Girl'', '' Portrait of Madame Cézanne'' and other works from 1962 and 1963. When discussing another work ('' I Know...Brad''), Lichtenstein stated that the name Brad sounded heroic to him and was used with the aim of clichéd oversimplification. ''Drowning Girl'' is another notable work with Brad as the heroic subject. The source of this image was a comic book panel with the two subjects positioned similarly to their position here, but they were situated in an automobile. In the source image the narrative content of the speech balloon said "But someday the bitterness will pass..." ''Masterpiece'' was part of the largest ever retrospective of Lichtenstein that visited The Art Institute of Chicago from May 16 to September 3, 2012, the National Gallery of Art in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

from October 14, 2012 to January 13, 2013, the

Tate Modern Tate Modern is an art gallery located in London. It houses the United Kingdom's national collection of international modern and contemporary art, and forms part of the Tate group together with Tate Britain, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. It ...

in London from February 21 to May 27, 2013 and The Centre Pompidou from July 3 to November 4, 2013. Several publications presented ''Masterpiece'' as part of their announcement of the retrospective. In January 2017,

Agnes Gund Agnes Gund (born 1938) is an American philanthropist and arts patron, collector of modern and contemporary art, and arts education and social justice advocate. She is President Emerita and Life Trustee of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and Chair ...

sold the 1962 painting ''Masterpiece'', which for years hung over the mantle of her

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apartment, for $165 million. The proceeds of the sale will be used to start a fund for

criminal justice reform Criminal justice reform addresses structural issues in criminal justice systems such as racial profiling, police brutality, overcriminalization, mass incarceration, and recidivism. Criminal justice reform can take place at any point where the cr ...

called the Art for Justice fund. The price was one of the 15 highest ever to be paid for an artwork. The purchaser was Steven A. Cohen.

Critical response

''Masterpiece'' is regarded as a tongue in cheek joke that reflects upon Lichtenstein's own career. In retrospect, the joke is considered "witty and yet eerily prescient" because it portended some of the future turmoil that the artist would endure. In the painting, the blonde female's speech bubble, "Why, Brad darling, This painting is a masterpiece! My, soon you'll have all of New York clamoring for your work!" conveys her remark as she gazes at the painting, of which a corner of the back is shown. Silent Brad conveys his agreement by his facial expression.

Adrian Searle Adrian Searle (born 1953 in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire) is the chief art critic of ''The Guardian'' newspaper in Britain, and has been writing for the paper since 1996. Previously he was a painter. Life and career Searle studied at the St ...

of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' says that the 1962 work, whose narrative and graphical content were both borrowed, was timely because Lichtenstein had his first exhibition in New York City at Leo Castelli Gallery that year, making the painting aspirational in an ironic way that comments on success and "the socio-sexual status of the hot young artist". The satirical commentary on Lichtenstein's career, followed the inside joke made the year before in '' Mr. Bellamy''. According to

Roberta Smith Roberta Smith (born 1948) is co-chief art critic of ''The New York Times'' and a lecturer on contemporary art. She is the first woman to hold that position. Early life Born in 1948 in New York City and raised in Lawrence, Kansas. Smith studied a ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', ''Masterpiece'' was one of Lichtenstein's works created in a way that produced "faint and uneven" Ben Day dots.

Notes

References

External links

Lichtenstein Foundation website

Masterpiece - Original Artist : Ted Galindo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Masterpiece 1962 paintings 20th-century portraits Paintings by Roy Lichtenstein Portraits by American artists Paintings about painting

Background

Critical response

See also

Notes

References

External links