Jim Dine b. 1935

Jim Dine is one of the few original Pop artists still working today.   He is best known for his vibrant images of hearts, palettes, robes and Pinocchio. Dine moved to New York upon receiving a B.F.A. from Ohio University in 1957. He quickly became active in the local art scene through his involvement with artists Claes Oldenburg and Allan Kaprow and musician John Cage in exhibiting "Happenings," performance art that was popular in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Dine's work was included in one of the first Pop Art shows in America, New Painting of Common Objects, which was held at the Norton Simon Museum in California and featured other Modern artists as Andy Warhol, Ed Ruscha and Roy Lichtenstein.

Though commonly associated with the Pop Art movement, Dine prefers to be recognized for his gestural approach, Dada assemblage and collage techniques. Dine started his assemblages in the 1960s, often attaching some of his own belongings to the canvas. Dine finds inspiration through his memories. He paints objects that have a strong personal meaning and a sense of identity.

When interviewed about his Heart series, Dine stated, "I use them as a template for all my emotions."

During Dine's artistic process, he often works through a single theme in various media. Dine personally investigates his themes, which are sometimes simply lost or overlooked in everyday life, by means of sculpture, painting, print or drawing. Dine once stated, "The figure is still the only thing I have faith in, in terms of how much emotion it's charged with and how much subject matter is there."

Jim Dine has been given over 300 solo exhibitions throughout his career. His work is featured in the permanent collections of the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Jewish Museum in New York, the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., the Boston Museum of Fine Art, the Neuberger Museum of Art in Purchase and the Museo di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto in Italy.

Related Categories: Representation of Everyday Objects, Happenings, Pop Art, Art of the 1960s, Popular Culture, Neo-Dada, Post-War American Art, Lithograph, Intaglio, Etching/Engraving.