JAMES ROSENQUIST, MIRAGE MORNING, 1974

James Rosenquist

MIRAGE MORNING, 1974

Another edition of this work was included in the exhibition, "James Rosenquist: A Retrospective" at The Menil Collection and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, May 17-August 17, 2003, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, October 16, 2003-January 25, 2004, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, July-October, 2004
About this particular work, a contemporaneous reviewer wrote:
"Sometimes Rosenquist just creates something that is lovely. "Mirage Morning," a color lithograph with Plexiglass and painted window-shade fixtures, string and stones and fenestrated and painted window shade, is both elegant and boisterous, intricate and intriguing. Published in an edition of 40, it measures 3 feet by 6 feet 2 inches and was executed in 1974-5..."

Most recently, "Mirage Morning" was exhibited at the University of South Florida - which described the work thus:
"Rosenquist’s works frequently incorporate references to mass media and though apparently simple on the surface, come off as surprisingly complicated and have greatly contributed to the development of pop art. His Mirage Morning is just one eye-catching example of his art. Created at USF Graphicstudio, Mirage Morning is a color lithograph with Plexiglas, painted window shades, and strings. Mirage Morning whimsically juxtaposes bright and cool colors against a backdrop of symmetry. Rosenquist blurs the line between the two- and three-dimensional by placing objects on the print surface in such a way that their shadows become part of the background. At its center is a bright blue window shade, placed in such a way that it appears boxed in by the hot colors on either side of it. To the right is an assembly of shapes that unite to form a star and on the left is a circle leaving its square frame in an off-kilter mirror image of the center blind. This positioning provides graceful symmetry in its geometric design and prompts the viewer to take in the picture as a whole. Simplistic at first glance, Mirage Morning is actually as complex as Rosenquist’s other works upon further inspection. The lithograph projects a sense of mystery, elegance, and cleanliness infused with the artist’s own wit and good humor..."

The present work is framed and ready to be exhibited. It was acquired from a sale of property from the Rosenthal Collection, Croton on Hudson, NY. The 1930's renovated home once belonged to silent film star Holbrook Blinn, and since its sale to the Rosenthals, 80 years ago, has housed this fabulous collection of art deco and modern furniture and fine art.
Literature: Rosenquist Retrospective exhibition catalogue and materials, Guggenheim Museum and the Menil Foundation, 2004
Catalogue Raisonne Reference: Glenn, 83
Printed by: Graphicstudio, University of South Florida (USF)
Published by: published by Castelli Graphics and Multiples Inc, New York

Other editions of Mirage Morning - a 1974 masterpiece - are in major museum collections such as the Brooklyn Museum and the Albright Knox - so it rarely comes to market!

Signed, and dated lower right "James Rosenquist 1974," numbered from the edition of 40 and titled lower left "Mirage Morning." Also featuring three embossed blind stamps of both printer and publisher, lower right.

 Provenance: Acquired from a sale of property from the Rosenthal Collection, Croton on Hudson, NY. The 1930's renovated home once belonged to silent film star Holbrook Blinn, and since its sale to the Rosenthals, 80 years ago, has housed this fabulous collection of art deco and modern furniture and fine art.

Exhibition History: 2003-4 Rosenquist retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum and Menil Foundation (another edition); 

2015 Exhibition Rosenquist and Rauschenberg from the USF collection, Tampa Florida (another edition)

Literature: Rosenquist Retrospective exhibition catalogue and materials, Guggenheim Museum and the Menil Foundation, 2004
Catalogue Raisonne Reference: Glenn, 83