Ruscha uses text in many of his works and many of his later paintings and prints are composed of only text phrases. “Standard Station” is an iconic representation of the roadside gas station, that ubiquitous symbol of American prosperity and mobility so embodied in the automobile. The silkscreen technique flattens the image so that it resembles a commercial advertisement; the design of the slanted roof literally slashes the scene into diagonal halves. The text, STANDARD, in bright white against a red background, becomes as integral to the composition as the building and the stunning color combination.
December's theme: Pop Art
ED RUSCHA (born 1937), “Standard Station”, 1966. Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois US.
Ruscha’s art chronicles American life and life on the west coast, with images connected to advertisement, to automobiles, to language, to Hollywood.
#arthistory #art #PopArt #EdRuscha
