About the Artist
Tom Wesselmann
Tom Wesselmann (1931–2004) was an American Pop artist known for his work in painting, collage, and sculpture. He gained recognition with his *Great American Nude* series (begun in 1961), which explored themes of sensuality and sexuality. Although he worked independently from contemporaries like Warhol and Lichtenstein, his art helped define the Pop Art movement, though he resisted being labeled within it.
Wesselmann's work often featured iconic imagery—cigarettes, lipstick, jewelry—while experimenting with perspective and flattened space. His creative practice extended to assemblage, collage, shaped canvases, and combination sculpture-paintings. In the 1980s, his use of negative space evolved, particularly in his *Drop-Out* series.
