LICHTENSTEIN

Roy Lichtenstein, one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, his work was coming to London and I was very excited to see whether there really was anything in Life magazine's quote of 1964 'is he the worst artist in the US?'

And my conclusion: NO!

Actually, I think Lichtenstein's work inspired a generation of artists. In the early 1960s he broke the norm of abstract expressionism and hit upon a new concept of painting inspired by comic strips, advertising and mass culture imagery. It provoked, there was instant delight or outrage and the Retrospective exhibition at the Tate was perfectly curated to instil this. The journey from Look Mickey in 1961, his first painting to get instant recognition right through to his 1995 Chinese Landscapes showed the sheer dominance of his work. Some of the paintings are huge. Testament to the fact that his skill of imitating the industrial technique of comic books, using a palette of primary colours, heavy black outlines and dots that simulated shadows and tones, is quite fantastic.

Yes there are similarities to work by Picasso and Matisse, his work is often simply household objects or suggest the portrayal of women as an extension to the household appliance however to be able to change the scale of objects, cropping, eliminating detail, changing items to be horizontal rather than diagonal to sharpen the drama, when seen in person, is quite fantastic.

His war and romance paintings are the most well known, his beautiful art deco 'Modern Series' and brass sculptures were a surprise half way through the exhibition.

 I must admit though, if I were able to purchase one piece of his work, it would be this mirror. I think it would be better placed in a theatre or Radio City music hall rather than my little cottage, but I think it is just simply stunning.