James Rosenquist Art for Sale: Prints & Originals

James Rosenquist emerged as a leading figure in the Pop Art movement of the 1960s, alongside contemporaries such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. Born in Grand Forks, North Dakota, Rosenquist's artistic journey took him from the American Midwest to the vibrant art scene of New York City.

Rosenquist's artistic language was shaped by his early career as a billboard painter. This commercial background, combined with his formal art education, allowed him to develop a distinctive style that blurred the lines between fine art and popular culture.

His large-scale paintings and prints, often featuring fragmented and juxtaposed images from advertising and mass media, became powerful commentaries on American consumer culture and politics.

Rosenquist's artistic career gained significant momentum in the early 1960s. His breakthrough came with the painting F-111 (1964-65), a room-sized, multi-panel work that juxtaposed images of a fighter bomber with consumer goods and references to the Vietnam War. This monumental piece established Rosenquist's reputation for creating visually complex, politically charged works.

Beyond painting, Rosenquist was also a prolific printmaker. Rosenquist’s For Love (1965), part of the 11 Pop Artists portfolio, reflects his ability to transform everyday imagery into layered, complex compositions. In For Love, Rosenquist blends disparate objects—floating fish, a hand, a coin—into a collage-like arrangement that reflects his commercial art background. Rosenquist’s work in this piece, much like the other artists in the 11 Pop Artists portfolio, demonstrates how screenprinting was pivotal to the Pop Art movement, utilising commercial techniques to question and explore the relationship between art and mass production.

Throughout his career, Rosenquist continued to push the boundaries of scale and subject matter. His 1997-8 The Swimmer In The Econo-mist was a monumental installation that covered three large canvases, reflecting his characteristic exploration of commercial and consumer imagery. This work delved into complex themes such as the relationship between economics, technology, and the environment, as well as humanity's entanglement with these forces. Notably, Rosenquist employed reflective materials and vibrant colours, creating a sense of disorientation and immersion for the viewer. The use of fragmented imagery underscores his ongoing fascination with scale, space, and the impact of technology on modern life, pushing the boundaries of traditional painting.

In March 2017, at the age of 83, Rosenquist died having shaped the language Contemporary Art.

Rosenquist’s Marilyn is a fragmented and layered depiction of the iconic Marilyn Monroe, made shortly after her death in 1962. In this artwork, Rosenquist divides Monroe's face into disjointed sections, resisting her instant recognition. Her eyes, lips, and hand are dispersed across the canvas in six panes, while large, bold letters, including her name and part of the Coca-Cola logo, further obscure the image. This fragmentation suggests that Monroe’s image, much like the Coca-Cola brand, became a product of mass media, packaged and consumed by the public. Rosenquist draws a parallel between the actress and consumer goods, emphasising how she was commodified by popular culture, reduced to a symbol rather than celebrated for her humanity. The piece critiques the commercialisation of both individuals and objects, pointing to the power of branding in the 1960s.
In his 1960 mixed-media President Elect, Rosenquist places John F. Kennedy’s campaign portrait beside images of middle-class consumerism, including a hand holding a slice of cake and a car wheel. The fragmented composition juxtaposes the idealised image of a political figure with the symbols of American prosperity, raising questions about the relationship between political power and consumer culture. By borrowing imagery from advertisements and mass media, Rosenquist critiques how Kennedy, through his presidential campaign, became a symbol of this commodification. The work explores the intersection of politics, advertising, and public perception, emphasising the spectacle of modern campaigns.
Throughout his career, Rosenquist incorporated elements of Surrealism into his paintings and prints, often blending dreamlike juxtapositions with consumer imagery. This approach is evident in works like House Of Fire (1989), where disparate ordinary objects—lipsticks and a shopping bag—are arranged in a fragmented manner. Rosenquist's mastery of collage-like compositions allowed him to explore the psychological impact of advertising and consumer culture while incorporating the uncanny ambiguity that define Surrealism.