James Rosenquist: The Sketchbooks, is a collection of sketches and drawings from American Pop artist James Rosenquist (b. 1933-2017). Drawing on his early experience as a billboard painter, Rosenquist culled imagery from print advertisements, photographs, and popular periodicals and recombined these to create mysterious and bold compositions. Utilizing the visual language of advertising, his work has plumbed questions ranging from environmentalism to female empowerment to issues of globalization and consumer culture.
Working primarily on a colossal scale, Rosenquist often juxtaposed seemingly unrelated imagery to comment on social, cultural, political, and environmental concerns in a way that was both subtle and overwhelming. James Rosenquist: The Sketchbooks digs deeply into the material that influenced his work, showcasing his drawings, sketches, and notes, as well as primary materials such as magazine clippings and advertisements, to provide new insights into the mind and process of this legendary artist.