Red Apple and Yellow Apple, 1982: Woodcut from the Seven Apples series

  • Red Apple and Yellow Apple, 1982 portrays two apples, the left yellow and the right red, both of which are portrayed in brushstrokes
    Red Apple and Yellow Apple, 1982
    Woodcut on handmade Iwano Kizuki Hosho paper, sheet: 70.8 x 95 cm (irregular)
    Edition of 60; plus 1 BAT, 14 AP, 1 PP, 4 Dedication Proofs
    ©The Estate of Roy Lichtenstein
    BACK TO: SEVEN APPLE WOODCUTS
     
    Red Apple and Yellow Apple, 1982 is a woodcut by Roy Lichtenstein from the Seven Apple Woodcuts series, where the artist presents a simplified still life composed of two apples arranged side by side. The apple on the left stands upright, its form defined by a bold outline and a thick yellow brushstroke running through its centre, accompanied by two smaller strokes that suggest the fruit’s surface. The apple on the right tilts slightly to the left, resting on its side with the stem pointing outward. This second fruit is characterised by a sweeping red brushstroke contained within a strong black outline.
     
    Both apples sit on a table suggested through loose yellow brushstrokes that act as shading beneath the forms. Behind them, a large gestural red brushstroke fills the background, adding movement and energy to the otherwise minimal composition. Through these bold, simplified marks, Lichtenstein reimagines the traditional still life using the visual language of Pop Art, reducing familiar objects to expressive brushstrokes and graphic colour.

  • "My work isn't about form. It's about seeing." 

     

    - Roy Lichtenstein

    Lichtenstein began working with woodcut printmaking in the early 1980s as a way to explore the relationship between traditional artistic techniques and his distinctive Pop Art style. Woodcut is one of the oldest printmaking methods, involving carving an image into a wooden block which is then inked and pressed onto paper. Lichtenstein embraced this historic process but used it to create highly modern images defined by bold outlines, simplified forms and expressive brushstrokes.