"Robert Indiana: Beyond LOVE"

Robert Indiana became one of the most famous 1960s Pop artists, due mainly to his signature image, LOVE, which first appeared in 1966. Rendered by the artist in both 2-D and 3-D versions, it instantly became synonymous with the era of flower power. However, its successive—and unauthorized—proliferation on products ranging from posters to keychains had a deleterious impact on Indiana's career. The artist became viewed by many as a hack, and as a result, his art, which stylistically alluded to roadside Americana, was dismissed. But in fact, social justice was often a subject in his work, and his emphasis on typography arguably anticipated certain aspects of late-1960s Conceptualism. This retrospective sets out to restore Indiana to his rightful place in the annals of postwar art.