Ice, Ice, Ice

Chill out with this work by Robert Cottingham, an artist known for his prints of commercial signage.

Cottingham grew up in Brooklyn, New York. "When I was nine or ten years old," he recalled, "my father began taking me into Manhattan … from our home in Brooklyn. The most exciting moment of every visit was that first glimpse of Times Square." This would prove to be an influence on Cottingham's art.

Artists such as Andy Warhol, Robert Indiana, and Jasper Johns also inspired Cottingham's work.

Cottingham's precise style, known as photorealism, preserves aspects of the everyday urban landscape and invites viewers to reflect on U.S. history and values.

To learn more about the artist, visit our online exhibition, Eyeing America: the Prints of Robert Cottingham.

Pictured: Robert Cottingham, born 1935, Ice, 1975, softground etching and aquatint on paper, 10 3/8 x 10 5/16 in., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase.