ROY LICHTENSTEIN, PASSAGE DU NORD-OUEST (NORTHWEST PASSAGE), THE NEW FALL OF AMERICA (LA NOUVELLE CHUTE DE L'AMÉRIQUE), ORIGINAL ETCHING AND AQUATINT, EDITION OF 80, 1992
Two decades after the publication of Allen Ginsberg’s 1972 poetry collection, The Fall Of America, Roy Lichtenstein was entrusted with illustrating a selection of poems from the book. Ginsberg was a central member of the Beat Generation, a literary movement responding to changes in American culture and politics in the post-war era.
Passage Du Nord-Ouest iIllustrates Ginsberg’s poem “Northwest Passage”, which details the harrowing consequences of local pollution and industrial reach. To this day, the Northwest Passage represents centuries of effort to find a route westward from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean. Ginsberg’s poem calls to attention the inherent financial and materialistic passage that this endeavour imposed across the North American continent.
Lichtenstein’s Passage Du Nord-Ouest draws on Ginsberg’s spontaneous and prophetic style of expression for its main composition. It is the only black and white work in the series, compiled out of broken black lines set against an off-white background. It is also the only print depicting a figure, showing Ginsberg himself drawn as a guru, floating in the centre of the canvas in lotus position. Lichtenstein’s Passage Du Nord-Ouest appropriates the long standing tradition of saint portraiture, presenting a minimalistic depiction of Ginsberg as a divine spiritual leader.
Find out more about The New Fall of America (La Nouvelle Chute de l’Amérique) Suite by Roy Lichtenstein.
ABOUT ROY LICHTENSTEIN
Born in Manhattan in 1923, Roy Lichtenstein was a leading figure in the Pop Art movement during the second half of the 20th century. His distinctive artistic style is inspired by the visual language of consumerism and advertising that pervaded American popular culture at the time, and his work recalls a society of widespread commercialism that has remained powerfully relevant to this day. Learn more about Roy Lichtenstein.
