Roy Lichtenstein

In the Car

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About this artwork

This painting is one of a series from the early 1960s in which Lichtenstein deals with the theme of romance. He would paint his works on a monumental scale, much enlarged from his original source material of comic-strip illustrations. This work is based on an image from the comic Girls' Romances. The original illustration included a thought bubble which read, 'I vowed to myself I would not miss my appointment – That I would not go riding with him – Yet before I knew it…' His paintings present archetypal images of contemporary America, simultaneously glamorous, mundane, dramatic and impersonal. Lichtenstein conveys the essence of the time, depicting recognisable 'types', such as the beautiful blonde woman and handsome, square-jawed man seen in this painting.

Updated before 2020

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  • artist:
    Roy Lichtenstein (1923 - 1997) American
  • title:
    In the Car
  • date created:
    1963
  • materials:
    Oil and magna on canvas
  • measurements:
    172.00 x 203.50 cm; Framed: 188.40 x 220.00 x 8.40 cm / 97.00 kg
  • object type:
  • credit line:
    Purchased 1980
  • accession number:
    GMA 2133
  • gallery:
  • subject:
  • glossary:
  • artwork photographed by:
    Antonia Reeve
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Roy Lichtenstein

Roy Lichtenstein