Study for "Razzmatazz" 1978

Roy Lichtenstein made this study for Razzmatazz with graphite and colored pencil on paper. It’s all about mark-making here, isn’t it? I mean, look at the way he builds up the image with these simple lines and blocks of color. It feels so immediate, so process-oriented. Like he’s thinking through the composition as he goes. I love the flatness of it, too. How he uses color and line to create these distinct shapes that fit together like a puzzle. Take the mannequin; it’s brown and awkwardly shaped, but Lichtenstein doesn’t try to hide the pencil marks. It’s all part of the experience. This work reminds me of Picasso, how he took everyday objects and turned them into something totally new and unexpected. In the end, art isn’t about creating perfect representations of reality, it’s about exploring the possibilities of seeing and thinking and experiencing the world in new ways.