Larry Rivers (An American-European Dialogue)

Between French Modernism and the New York School: The idiosyncratic art of the pioneer of American Pop Art. The American painter, musician, and filmmaker Larry Rivers (* 1923 in New York City; † 2002 ibid.) is considered one of the most influential protagonists of the New York art scene in the period from the 1950s to the 1970s. He played with Miles Davis and Charlie Parker, was a close friend of Frank O’Hara, and pioneered Pop Art. In dealing with contemporary artist colleagues and historical role models, he always strived to making painting visible as a medium of reflection. From an early age, Rivers was preoccupied with French painting of the late nineteenth century. During his stay in Paris in 1961/62, he met Jean Tinguely and Niki de Saint Phalle, whereupon the range of materials he used was extended to wood, cardboard, and electric light. For the first time, the present volume–the first monograph in twenty years–sheds light on Larry Rivers’ idiosyncratic art with a view to the tension between traditional French painting and Abstract Expressionism around Willem de Kooning. The catalogue accompanies the first European exhibition of Larry Rivers‘ work in forty years at the Ludwig Museum Koblenz.