Roy Lichtenstein, Tel Aviv Museum Mural, 1989

The two massive panels of this mural were made especially for the Tel Aviv Museum of Art by the American Pop artist Roy Lichtenstein. This artist has become famous for his painting style that mimics the graphics and printing techniques of cheap comics. But a recurring theme in his work has been art itself. In fact Lichtenstein has said that a contemporary artist need seach no further than the history of art for new topics to adapt and rework in their own style.

Here, if you look to the left hand panel, and to the bottom edge, you'll see the word ART written in capitals. On the far left a girl with blond hair, depicted in the Pop Art style typical of Lichtenstein, looks at the scene before her which is mostly made up of figures taken from the works of other artists. Some of these are actually works to be found here in this Museum. For example, if you look to the center of the panel you'll see a strange horned figure made in the style of Picasso, while at the top of the panel a violinist floats in the spirit of paintings by Chagall. In a diagonal strip below the violinist and to the right, the work of Alexander Archipenko is hinted at by a geometrical figure woman that also takes the form of a guitar. This work, by the way, can be seen in the Assia gallery. On the far right we can see the backs of three figures mounting a staircase, an image which recalls the 'Bauhaus Staircase' by the Bauhaus teacher and artist Oskar Schlemmer.

Lichtenstein's right-hand panel is painted in an abstract and geometric manner. But if you look back and forth between the two panels you'll see that the abstract shapes on the right closely relate to the spaces, forms and colors described more realistically on the left. And if you turn around, you can see how Lichtenstein has related his mural directly to the architecture of this part of the museum with the zigzag structure of the stairwell leading up to the galleries.