Lisa Perry Flagship at 75th St. and Madison Ave.
Sometimes, it's hard to move on from LOVE. In the case of Robert Indiana, his stacked representation of LO + VE became an instant icon of the 60's counterrevolution, memorialized in sculpture and stamps (and proliferation of unlicensed products). Yet, for the 85-year-old American pop artist, the single widely recognizable graphic overshadowed his other works, until now. From Sept. 26 to January 5, The Whitney Museum presents Robert Indiana: Beyond Love, a retrospective of 95 pieces spanning 5 decades, representing Indiana's illustrated interpretation on survival, injustice and--of course--love. Two streets up, mod designer Lisa Perry concurrently celebrates Indiana's work through a limited edition capsule collection of his bold graphics on her signature silhouettes--only 50 or less of each style are available!
Lisa Perry love stamp dress [photo source: Lisa Perry] // LOVE by Robert Indiana, 1968 [photo source: Robert Indiana]
Paying homage to his home state, Robert Clark changed his last name to Indiana in 1958. Robert Indiana became a successful new persona, once disassociated from the banality and impoverished identity of Bobby Clark. Indiana's specialty was colorful signage and graphic art, with a focus on single words and numbers. Though LOVE is Indiana's best known image, he often paired the words EAT and DIE in honor of his mother's dying words "Have you had enough to eat?" Numbers--especially 2 and 6--were key,reflecting pivotal points in Indiana's life; he arrived in NYC at 26 and held his first solo exhibit in '62. Additionally, Indiana became fascinated by the numerological parallel to Marilyn Monroe's life; Marilyn was born in '26, died in 62 and went through 6 x 2 foster families.
Decade Autoportrait 1961 by Robert Indiana, 1971 [photo source: Robert Indiana], Lisa Perry bowery dress [photo source: Lisa Perry]
Lisa Perry fêted her collaboration with Robert Indiana in early October, inviting a few dozen guests to mingle in awe, inside her art-filled home. Echoing Perry's bold aesthetic and undeniable love of pop art, the latest artist collection is "current"--more so than the previous featuring the deceased Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol--as it launches in tandem with Indiana's Whitney retrospective. Though once constricted by LOVE, the collaboration with Perry and art exhibition at the Whitney are a testament to how Indiana is finally moving beyond...
Tag on the Robert Indiana + Lisa Perry bowery dress
“5 has always been to me…it is the prime of life. Or one of the high points of a man’s life. It is its relationship to the star. And the star, after all, is the real symbol of the United States. So it is always an American 5…’65, it was an important year because then I moved to Spring Street. I left Coenties Slip. And probably, I can’t really recall about the CHIEF… but what am I saying, of course I know why the CHIEF is there. In ’65 I had an exhibition in Washington. I was at the White House. I was a guest of President Johnson. One of my paintings [The Calumet] was exhibited…CHIEF is the president and he lives in Washington.” – Robert Indiana
[source: Robert Indiana]
Window of Lisa Perry's Madison Ave. flagship at 77th St.
Lisa Perry's number sweater five [source: Lisa Perry] // Decade Autoportrait 1965 by Robert Indiana, 1972-1977 [source: Robert Indiana]
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