James Rosenquist (1933–2017) was an American painter and one of the leading figures in the pop art movement. Rosenquist began his artistic career as a billboard painter, which significantly influenced his later artistic style. He moved to New York City in the late 1950s, where he became associated with fellow pop artists such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. Rosenquist's signature style involved creating large-scale paintings that incorporated fragmented imagery, often drawing from consumer culture, advertising, and political themes. His groundbreaking work "F-111," a mural-sized painting that blended images of a fighter plane with consumer goods, remains a landmark piece in the history of pop art, showcasing his ability to merge visual impact with social commentary.

 

James Rosenquist's art is celebrated in major museums and institutions worldwide with his most major retrospectives taking place at the Whitney Museum of American Art in 1972 and a full career retrospective at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 2003. Rosenquist's ability to juxtapose disparate elements in visually stunning compositions, coupled with his commentary on contemporary culture, has left an indelible mark on the pop art movement and the broader landscape of modern art.