Image Essay #3

Tom Wesselmann’s Still Life #28 is a great example of Pop Art. This piece uses the technique of collage. Collage is the technique of using separate, individual elements and then combining them by overlapping to create a final picture. These elements can be anything from magazine cutouts to fabrics to photographs. Wesselmann also adds his own creative technique in this piece by incorporating an actual television into this two-dimensional painting. The television shows current television programs in black and white.

The incorporation of the television also adds another characteristic of Pop Art. This, of course, is the use of common objects. The television, especially in the 1960s, had become a very common household object, and America started to be centralized around. For instance, John F. Kennedy was said to have won the presidency because he looked better in the presidential debates. To further add to the idea of everyday items, the television shows the programs that air the current day the viewer sees the artwork. That means if one were to walk into a museum and view the piece, it would be playing whatever is on television that day rather than a constantly replayed show from years prior. This use of the television grabs the attention of the viewer first because it is different than typical art we see and second it is moving, so our eye is naturally drawn to it. The use of this common object also allows for more people to be able to relate to the piece of art. More people will be able to recognize and try to understand the piece if it is something they can recognize.

The setting also adds to this as it is a typical kitchen area. It is not very fancy or ‘high-class.’ Rather, it depicts a more common middle-class area that more people can relate to. The accentual elements of the artwork are also very common objects. The fruits within the picture are common fruits that can be found in a typical grocery store in America. They are not exotic fruits that can not be found for several miles. The cat in the middle-ground of the painting is also a very common looking cat. This only further adds to the idea of using everyday object within the art.