Pop Art Rug by Roy Lichtenstein, Origin: India, Circa: Mid- 20th Century – This carpet is a wonderful example of the artistic genius of Roy Lichtenstein, who incorporated elements of pop art forms into designs reflective of more serious styles. In this rug, he uses elements of Cubism to define the major theme of the work, but adds Ben-Day dots to accentuate color and form, heavy black lines to isolate and define shapes and primary colors accentuated by white and black to add volume and contrast.
The major motif, an elongated rectangle, spans the width of the carpet. With a few crisp black lines, the artist transforms the rectangle into a female face outlined by yellow hair. Four bands of yellow define the sun. Yellow in the foreground suggests multiple planes. Solid fields of burgundy in the background are in counterpoint to burgundy Ben-Day dots in the female figure in the foreground. The interplay of solid and dot is repeated with separate blue and black solids juxtaposed against fields of blue and black dots.
