Modern Head

Roy Lichtenstein, Modern Head, 1974/1990, painted stainless steel, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Jeffrey H. Loria in loving memory of his sister, Harriet Loria Popowitz

 
, 2008.28A-F, © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein
Roy Lichtenstein, Modern Head, 1974/1990, painted stainless steel, 3722328 in. (944.9589.320.3 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Jeffrey H. Loria in loving memory of his sister, Harriet Loria Popowitz , 2008.28A-F, © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein

Artwork Details

Title
Modern Head
Date
1974/1990
Dimensions
3722328 in. (944.9589.320.3 cm)
Copyright
© Estate of Roy Lichtenstein
Credit Line
Gift of Jeffrey H. Loria in loving memory of his sister, Harriet Loria Popowitz 
Mediums
Mediums Description
painted stainless steel
Classifications
Subjects
  • Figure — head
Object Number
2008.28A-F

Artwork Description

The Smithsonian American Art Museum acquired the monumental sculpture Modern Head by Roy Lichtenstein, a major figure in the pop art movement, in 2008.

Modern Head stands thirty-one feet tall and is made of stainless steel painted blue. The sculpture is part of a series Lichtenstein began in the late 1960s that explored the idea of creating images of human figures that look like machines. This concept pervaded the artist's work throughout his career.

Lichtenstein created the first Modern Head in 1974 out of wood that was painted blue. In 1989 he produced an edition of four in brushed steel. In 1990 the artist painted one a vibrant blue, making the sculpture in American Art's collection a unique work.

Silhouetted against the urban skyline, the flat planes and curvilinear geometric forms of the sculpture blend the streamlined industrial style of 1930s art deco architecture and design with references to Picasso and Apollo, the Greek god of the arts.

In 1996, Modern Head was installed by the Public Art Fund of New York City in Battery Park City, one block from the World Trade Center. The sculpture survived the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks with only surface scratches and was temporarily used by the FBI as a message board during its investigations. The sculpture was removed from the site on November 9, 2001, and was subsequently on view at the Nassau County Museum of Art in Roslyn Harbor, New York, and at the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden in Coral Gables, Florida.

The sculpture is installed on the grounds of the Museum's main building at the corner of Ninth and F streets, N.W.

Smithsonian American Art Museum, 2008

Works by this artist (13 items)

Roy Lichtenstein, Modern Head, 1974/1990, painted stainless steel, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Jeffrey H. Loria in loving memory of his sister, Harriet Loria Popowitz

 
, 2008.28A-F, © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein
Modern Head
Date1974/1990
painted stainless steel
On view
Roy Lichtenstein, Reverie, from the portfolio 11 Pop Artists, Volume II, 1965, color screenprint on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Philip Morris Incorporated, 1966.29.15, © Estate of Roy Lichtenstein
Reverie, from the portfolio 11 Pop Artists, Volume II
Date1965
color screenprint on paper
Not on view
Save Our Planet Save Our Water
Date1971
screenprint on photo-offset lithograph
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

Anthony Padovano, Sentinel, 1967-1968, steel and plated copper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Herbert and Nanette Rothschild Fund, Inc., 1968.132
Sentinel
Date1967-1968
steel and plated copper
Not on view
José Bermúdez, A la Maniere Grecque VII, 1962, steel, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Pyramid Galleries, Ltd., 1973.161
A la Maniere Grecque VII
Date1962
steel
Not on view
Mark di Suvero, Preliminary Maquette for Motu Viget, 1974, welded steel, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, Art-in-Architecture Program, 1979.159.49, © 1974, Mark di Suvero
Preliminary Maquette for Motu Viget
Date1974
welded steel
On view
Alexander Liberman, Maquette for On High, 1978, welded and painted steel on steel base, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the General Services Administration, 1980.49.9
Maquette for On High
Date1978
welded and painted steel on steel base
Not on view