Whaam!: The Art & Life of Roy Lichtenstein

The life of the great Pop Art painter Roy Lichtenstein, illustrated with his most famous artworks. In the newest of Abrams’ award-winning line of picture book biographies of artists, Susan Goldman Rubin evocatively explores Roy Lichtenstein’s work and life and his groundbreaking influence on the art world. In Roy’s long career as a teacher, artist, and innovator, he changed the way that people thought about art and how artists thought about their subjects, challenging people to see familiar sights with new eyes. Classically trained in painting and drawing, Roy found inspiration from cartoons, newspaper comics, and children’s books—images most people didn’t consider “serious” art. He also chose to paint, in meticulous detail, the building blocks of painting—a single brushstroke or the back of a canvas—drawing attention to the way that artists use these tools. Roy and the other Pop Artists, including Andy Warhol, broke down the rules about what makes proper subjects for fine art. In over a thousand paintings and numerous other works, Roy brought familiar images into new light and captured the imagination of the world. The book includes a bibliography, an index, and a list of museums where you can see Lichtenstein’s work.

Susan Goldman Rubin has written a number of books for young readers, including Andy Warhol: Pop Art Painter; L’Chaim! To Jewish Life in America; Searching for Anne Frank; Margaret Bourke-White, an ALA Best Book for Young Adults; and Steven Spielberg: Crazy for Movies, named one of the New York Public Library’s Best Books for the Teen Age. She lives in Malibu, California.