Monet and Lichtenstein Cathedrals at LACMA

           World renowned impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926) and some of his finest work is being featured right now at Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) alongside the pop art of Roy Lichtenstein (1923-1997). Both feature their interpretation and vision of the Rouen Cathedral in Northern France which are quite different in style and feel. It is truly an astounding exhibit containing just ten paintings on three walls, but the Monet/ Lichtenstein presentation is a wonderful comparison of two separate art forms at an unparalleled skill level.

           Monet is regarded as the French father of Impressionism. His paintings have been significant for the style of art they show, as well as their value even in the current day. As one of the most recognized names in the art world, Monets have been regarded as masterpieces for the last century. Lichtenstein was also a prominent figure in the art world, especially when it comes to Pop art as well as the entire 21^st century. His works have been referenced in movies and in regards to the World Trade Center. Both have been exalted as some of the greatest artists in history and so a comparison of their series’ on the Rouen Cathedral is an interesting study and made for a wonderful art show.

One of Thirty Rouen Cathedral painted by Claude Monet. Courtesy of LA Times.

           Monet created a series of 30 paintings of the Rouen Cathedral between 1982 and 1983 and five of them were collected for this exhibit. They come from major impressionism collections—two from The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, which co-organized the show with LACMA, and three from Paris' Musée d'Orsay. Monet uses the same subject for every painting but different lighting and position for each one to display his various impressions on it on any given day. He implements his whole arsenal of colors in this series, capturing the different times of day, weather, and feel of the Cathedral. It is absolutely breath taking to Monet stack up layers of paint to perfect every color, every stroke, every texture. It is interesting to see how something can look a little bit messy up close can be such a phenomenally planned work of art when you take a step back.

Rouen Cathedral series on display at LACMA painted by Roy Lichtenstein. Photo provided by the LA Times.

           This is what Roy Lichtenstein counts on when he did his series on the Rouen Cathedral. Lichtenstein’s form of art mirrors that of comic books with his use of Ben-day dots. His method was that he would paint a canvas one color and then project a picture of the Rouen Cathedral onto the canvas. Then he would have his assistant paint circles with a stencil by hand while he directed them where he wanted them to go. He could see the bigger picture, even though close up it was merely a collage of dots. The viewer must look at it the same way to be able to see it. Once you take a step back, the Cathedrals jump out at you with vivid colors and flavor. Some are hard to see though, as he washes them out with his usage of white on yellow and black on blue to portray high noon and the dead of night. The five paintings Lichtenstein created are owned by LACMA patrons, Eli and Edythe Broad and are all placed close together on one wall to show the series. It adds to the already comic book feel that Lichtenstein tends to possess. Even though it is a little bit hard to see the big picture without squinting, the array of colors brightened up the very serious feel that the Monets have in the exhibit.

The Monet/ Lichtenstein exhibit is quite fascinating, seeing impressionism at its finest and pop art as its opposite, working together to portray the same subject. Walking into this widely popularized art show, it was slightly disappointing to see so few painting and to see such works of art as Monet and Lichtenstein pieces contained in so small of a space, but is it definitely still worth it. The Monet/ Lichtenstein paintings are truly works of art because of their depth and no matter how small the show may seem, it is worth your money to be in the presence of greatness.

It will be open to the public at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art until January 1, 2012.