James Rosenquist, Source for U-Haul-It; U-Haul-It, One Way Anywhere and For Bandini, 1968, Magazine clippings, color photograph and mixed media on paper, 9 3/8” x 23 ¼”. Collection of the artist. © James Rosenquist/ Licensed by VAGA New York, NY. Image courtesy of the artist.
While Rosenquist’s powerful and well-known painting F-111 (1964-1965) remains in New York, a portfolio of prints he created in 1974 that re-presents the subject and material seen in the original will be a part of the show at OSU. This inclusion allows viewers insight into one of the most memorable works of Pop Art. The prints focus on the F-111 military plane, but as the painting moves forward, Rosenquist also shows a series of imagery that recalls advertising and culture: piles of spaghetti, a young girl with bows in her hair, a light bulb, a tire. But within the bold and brightly colored imagery looms violence. Just beyond the plane itself, Rosenquist has painted a missile head and a mushroom cloud, and even a scuba diver’s bubbles begin to look ominous.
fell off the continental divide and drifted east, which was where he needed to be as an artist to do the work he needed to do.” The work includes imagery of a car and a staircase, combined with nails in groups of fives, and it captures the spirit of time and relocation.
By contrast, Off the Continental Divide (1974) recalls Rosenquist’s midwestern roots, as he grew up in Grand Forks, North Dakota and later Minneapolis. As Bancroft elaborates, “That print really addresses this idea that people flow east or west, and as an artist he
This exhibition is not to be missed. It will be on display from November 10, 2014 to March 14, 2015 at the Postal Plaza Gallery, located at 720 S. Husband Street in Stillwater. The opening reception will be on November 20, followed by a dialogue
In highlighting the diversity in his work, the show will allow the viewer to see the breadth and skill of the artist. One of his massive canvases, The Geometry of Fire (2011), measures 11-x-25 feet. This enormous work is one of his more recent paintings, but it hints at his past career painting billboards. Here one can see his vibrant use of colors: shades of orange and red are paired with areas of black and white, resembling various constellations and shiny metal.
with Rosenquist and Bancroft on the 21st. More information, including details on programming and events, can be found at museum.okstate.edu. To see more of the artist’s work, visit www.jimrosenquist-artist.com. n Emily L. Newman is an assistant professor of art history at Texas A&M University-Commerce. Newman specializes in contemporary art, gender studies and popular culture, and she earned her PhD from The Graduate Center, City University of New York.
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