Art History News

Saturday, September 19, 2026

Roy Lichtenstein: 1997

The Whitney Museum of American Art’s current exhibition

Roy Lichtenstein: 1997 examines the final year of the artist’s life and work.

Already an established painter and Pop artist, Roy Lichtenstein (1923–1997) continued to develop his studio practice at age 73, pursuing ambitious projects, including two mural commissions, several large-scale sculptures, and a new series of prints.

The exhibition highlights a period of sustained innovation for Lichtenstein as he expanded his visual vocabulary while continuing to engage with many of the themes and image references that shaped his career. Bringing together studies, prints, models, and other ephemera, many from the Whitney’s collection, Roy Lichtenstein: 1997 offers a focused look at his experimentation and ongoing interest in new technologies and their effects on image making.

On view on the Museum’s 3rd floor through June 1, 2027, this exhibition is presented in conjunction with Roy Lichtenstein: Like New, a major exhibition opening at the Whitney on October 11.

In 1997, Lichtenstein remained as innovative and productive as ever, working on a variety of adventurous projects decades after he helped introduce broader audiences to Pop art through his celebrated paintings inspired by comics and American consumer culture. Throughout his career, Lichtenstein’s palette consisted mainly of primary colors and his signature bold black outlines. In his later years, however, he began to incorporate vibrant highlights of mint green and turquoise, coral and cyan, and moved away from using heavy outlines that characterized his earlier work, resulting in images that responded to the aesthetics of the emerging digital age. Even as he pursued new directions, Lichtenstein continued to reuse images and motifs from his own work, such as pyramids and brushstrokes, as well as referencing iconic works by artists like Leonardo da Vinci and Henri Matisse, as he had done throughout his career.

“Though still recognizably his own, these works attest to Lichtenstein’s remarkable openness even five decades into his career—open not only to developments in art and technology, but to new techniques and approaches in his own working process,” said co-organizer David Crane, Curatorial Research Associate at the Whitney Museum.

“Because many of the works on view remain unrealized or unfinished, they provide a rare glimpse into the artist's hand at work.” “As a way to build off conversations prompted by the 5th floor’s Roy Lichtenstein: Like New exhibition, David and I were drawn to several of the permanent collection’s unfinished prototypes and studies from 1997,” said co-organizer Nakai Falcón, Curatorial Assistant at the Whitney. “Engaging with the late-90s dawn of the internet, Lichtenstein’s final experimental gestures serve as a visionary bridge between the constraints of physical reality and a transcendent future.”

In September 1997, Lichtenstein died unexpectedly after falling ill the month prior, leaving a number of works unfinished. Several works were fabricated or completed posthumously, with others surviving only as sketches and maquettes.

Among the works on view is Chapel of the Eucharist Mural (Study), 1997, a study related to a mural for the Padre Pio Pilgrimage Church in San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy. Renzo Piano, the architect responsible for the Whitney Museum’s current building in downtown Manhattan, was commissioned to design the church and invited Lichtenstein to contribute a mural to the site.

Other projects include studies for a proposal from the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, to create a pair of murals for the building’s lobby. With Bellagio Hotel Mural: Still Life with Reclining Nude (Study), 1997, Lichtenstein explores the use of color outlines and experiments with the flattening of perspectives in interior spaces. Seen together, the featured works reveal the developments in Lichtenstein’s practice and approaches at the end of his career, while illuminating the breadth of work underway during his final months.

Roy Lichtenstein: 1997 is organized by David Crane, Curatorial Research Associate, and Nakai Falcón, Curatorial Assistant.

Roy Lichtenstein, Brushstroke Still Life with Lamp, 1997. Screenprint and acrylic on coated metal and frame, 54 1/8 × 72 5/8 × 1 9/16 in. (137.5 × 184.5 × 4 cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Roy Lichtenstein Study Collection, gift of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation 2019.217a-b. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2026

Roy Lichtenstein, Untitled [pyramid], c. 1970. Dye diffusion transfer print (Polaroid), 3 3/8 × 4 3/16 in. (8.5 × 10.7cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Roy Lichtenstein Study Collection, gift of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation 2019.234.12. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2026

Roy Lichtenstein, Virtual Interior with Book, 1996, from American Academy of Arts and Letters: Centennial Portfolio. Screenprint: sheet, 23 15/16 × 18 in. (60.8 × 45.7 cm); image, 20 3/16 × 13 15/16 in. (51.3 × 35.4 cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Roy Lichtenstein Study Collection, gift of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation 2019.209. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2026

Roy Lichtenstein, Bellagio Hotel Mural: Still Life with Reclining Nude (Study), 1997. Collage and graphite pencil on board: sheet, 38 5/8 × 54 5/16 in. (98.1 × 138 cm); image, 36 1/2 × 52 3/16 in. (92.7 × 132.6 cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Roy Lichtenstein Study Collection, gift of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation 2019.79. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2026

Roy Lichtenstein, Pyramid (Maquette), c. 1996. Collaged paper and tape on foamcore, 17 1/16 × 28 3/4 × 5 in. (43.3 × 73 × 12.7 cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Roy Lichtenstein Study Collection, gift of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation 2019.228. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2026

Roy Lichtenstein, Reclining Nude I, Aurora (Study), 1997. Graphite and marker on polyester tracing film, 23 1/4 × 20 3/8 in. (59.1 × 51.8 cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Roy Lichtenstein Study Collection, gift of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation 2019.275. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2026

Roy Lichtenstein, Interior with Chair, 1997, from the portfolio Leo Castelli 90th Birthday Portfolio. Screenprint: sheet, 37 × 27 in. (94 × 68.6 cm); image, 27 1/16 × 20 9/16 in. (68.7 × 52.2 cm). Edition 53/90. Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; gift of Jean-Christophe Castelli and tribute from the artists in honor of Leo Castelli 99.63.4. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2026

Roy Lichtenstein, Wall Pyramid (Model), c. 1996. Collaged paper and tape on board, 13 1/2 × 19 5/8 × 6 1/2 in. (34.3 × 49.8 × 16.5 cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Roy Lichtenstein Study Collection, gift of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation 2019.233. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2026

Roy Lichtenstein, Bellagio Hotel Mural: Interior with Painting of Reclining Nude (Study), 1997. Collage and graphite pencil on board: sheet, 36 × 51 3/4 in. (91.4 × 131.4 cm); mount, 38 × 52 7/8 in. (96.5 × 134.3 cm). Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; The Roy Lichtenstein Study Collection, gift of the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation 2019.78. © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein/DACS 2026

Friday, September 18, 2026

Christie's Prints & Multiples

Left to right: Roy Lichtenstein, Two Nudes, from: Nude Series (1994, estimate: £150,000-200,000),

and Andy Warhol, Mickey Mouse, from Myths, (1981, estimate: £150,000-200,000)

Christie's is pleased to present Prints & Multiples, an online sale and exhibition in London this September Prints season, celebrating editions from established artists and emerging talents from the early 20th century to the present day.

Roy Lichtenstein's seminal Two Nudes from the artist's Nude Series, his final major body of work, is one of the lead highlights of the season. Numbered 18 in an exclusive print run of 40, the work is estimated to reach £150,000-200,000. Andy Warhol's monumental, glittering Mickey Mouse, from Myths (1981, estimate: £150,000-200,000) is a further highlight of the sale. Covered with diamond dust, Mickey Mouse is one of Warhol's most iconic images. From the edition of 200, this work evokes Warhol's characteristic playfulness and is a favourite from the Myths series.

Other rare works include Banksy's iconic Flower Thrower Triptych (Grey) from 2019 (estimate: £100,000-150,000), coming to auction as one of only a few examples issued from the studio in the original artist frames; Pablo Picasso's intimate, early edition linocut in colours, Portrait de Jacqueline accoudée (1959, estimate: £100,000-150,000); and David Hockney's vibrant Untitled No. 346, from A Bigger Book Art Edition B (2010/16, estimate: £20,000-30,000) from the artists monumental compendium of iPad prints. Further highlights include three examples of the late Yayoi Kusama's ever popular Pumpkins, in examples of Red, Yellow and Green (estimate: £20,000-30,000 each).

Lot 6
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
Marilyn Monroe (Marilyn): one print

EstimateGBP 100,000 - 150,000
Starting bidGBP 100,000
Closing: 6 days

Lot 13
PABLO PICASSO (1881-1973)
Portrait de Jacqueline accoudée

EstimateGBP 100,000 - 150,000
Starting bidGBP 90,000
Closing: 6 days
Lot 17
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
Mickey Mouse, from: Myths
EstimateGBP 150,000 - 200,000
Starting bidGBP 140,000
Closing: 6 days

Lot 18
BANKSY
Flower Thrower Triptych (Grey) (in the Artist's Frames)

EstimateGBP 100,000 - 150,000
Starting bidGBP 90,000
Closing: 6 days
Lot 31
ANDY WARHOL (1928-1987)
Queen Elizabeth II, from: Reigning Queens

EstimateGBP 120,000 - 180,000
Starting bidGBP 120,000
Closing: 6 days
Lot 35
ROY LICHTENSTEIN (1923-1997)
Two Nudes, from: Nude Series

EstimateGBP 150,000 - 200,000
Starting bidGBP 140,000
Closing: 6 days

David Byrd

Anton Kern Gallery

Sep 25 - Sep 27, 2026

Anton Kern Gallery will present work by David Byrd in a solo presentation at Independent 20th Century. David Byrd (b. 1926, Springfield, IL; d. 2013, Oxford, NY) was a highly productive yet reclusive artist.

After serving in the army during World War II, Byrd briefly studied at the Dauphin School of Art in Philadelphia through the G. I. Bill, and then at the Ozenfant School of Fine Arts in New York. In the 1950s, he worked odd jobs across New York State, including as a deliveryman, janitor, and movie house usher, which inspired his genre-scene paintings. Starting in 1958, he worked as an orderly in the psychiatric ward at the Veterans Administration Medical Hospital in Montrose, New York, for 30 years.

He simultaneously developed an expansive body of paintings about his patients, routines, and the surrounding landscape. Upon retirement, he devoted himself fully to his art; however, did not publicly exhibit it until a few months before his death.

Since taking on Byrd’s Estate in 2019, Anton Kern Gallery has held four solo exhibitions in New York (2019, 2021, 2024, 2025), curated presentations at Art Basel in Switzerland (2023) and Miami Beach (2019), and published the artist’s 216 page manuscript, which is the codex for understanding his oeuvre of paintings, drawings, and assemblage sculptures. In 2025, the gallery and the David Byrd Estate published the artist’s online catalogue raisonné. They have also commissioned scholarly texts in order to broaden awareness of the artist and contextualize his work within 20th Century art history. Byrd’s legacy continues to be fostered through collaborations with international curators and institutions.

IMAGES

David Byrd , People at Bar (P53), 1960 , Anton Kern Gallery
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Gagosian

Sep 24 - Dec 12, 2026

Gagosian is pleased to announce an exhibition dedicated to René Magritte and his enduring influence on the art of today, opening on September 24, 2026, at the Grosvenor Hill gallery in London. This Is Still Not a Pipe: The Afterlife of Magritte examines the artist’s legacy through significant paintings, works on paper, sculptures, and photography from all periods of his career. Loaned by museums and private collectors, they include his best-known subjects, from apples and pipes to bowler hats and cotton-cloud skies. These are juxtaposed with works by contemporary artists of different generations, many of which have been created specifically for the exhibition.

With this presentation, Gagosian marks the anniversaries of two historical Magritte exhibitions. It is twenty years since Magritte and Contemporary Art: The Treachery of Images (2006–07) at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), a group exhibition distinguished by dramaturgical installations conceived by John Baldessari, which was the first major exploration of the Belgian Surrealist’s impact on American and European artists of the postwar generation. Gagosian’s London exhibition also acknowledges the landmark International Surrealist Exhibition held ninety years ago at the New Burlington Galleries, London, a short walk from the Grosvenor Hill gallery. The 1936 exhibition is regarded as a watershed for the Surrealist movement and was instrumental in establishing Magritte’s own international reputation.

This Is Still Not a Pipe: The Afterlife of Magritte includes the painting La Lampe philosophique (The Philosopher’s Lamp, 1936), which featured in LACMA’s exhibition. The painting was made shortly before the International Surrealist Exhibition, which featured a gouache of the same image. Widely understood as a conceptual self-portrait, La Lampe philosophique epitomizes Magritte’s pictorial explorations of paradox and introspection. The artist wrote about this work: “The meditations of an absent-minded, obsessive philosopher may conjure up the image of a mental world closed in upon itself as, in this case, the smoker is the prisoner of his pipe.”

Gagosian

Gagosian