Secret Incarnation

Artist James Rosenquist (American, 1933-2017)

Date1984

DimensionsPainting: 66 1/4 × 78 × 1 3/4 in. (168.3 × 198.1 × 4.4 cm)

MediumOil on canvas.

ClassificationPaintings

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1985.33

Not on View

Label TextWith alternating, fragmented glimpses of flowers and faces, James Rosenquist has created a sense of movement and mystery in this enigmatic composition. Drawing upon his early experience as a billboard painter, he uses monumental images with dramatic results. Here it seems almost as if a billboard has begun to peel away, revealing the old advertisements beneath it. In 1962 Rosenquist’s art, along with that of Andy Warhol and others, attained prominence as part of the Pop Art movement. Combining fragmentary commercial images in unexpected ways, he creates visual metaphors for the complexity of American life.