Starting in 2000, Sir Peter Blake, the godfather of British Pop Art, began paying homage to the
great art movement in his ‘Sources of Pop Art’ series of silkscreens
Each print contains recognisable images easily associated with ’50s popular culture as well as
the inspiration behind and the legacy of Pop Art. These include images of Marilyn Monroe, Elvis
Presley, James Dean, Mickey Mouse and pinup women. Such images are arranged beside
details from famous works of Pop Art including the comic book-like works of Roy Lichtenstein,
the bold blocks of colour by Ellsworth Kelly and the Coca–Cola bottles of Andy Warhol. Given
the series title and Blake’s oeuvre of motifs and characters, it can be inferred that ‘Sources of
Pop Art’ stiches together the sources he himself has turned to in the manufacturing of his own
Pop aesthetic.
Whilst ‘Sources of Pop Art’ includes images taken from other artists, illustrators and
photographers, and indeed the diamond dust silkscreening technique comes after Warhol’s own
successful efforts, at the heart of the series is Blake’s signature technique of collage.
Here, his source material for his artistic practice in general also becomes his more immediate
and literal source material for these collages turned prints. Invoking celebratory colours and
Blake’s signature careful organisation of materials, the resulting works of ‘Sources of Pop Art’
are actively engaging prints which narrate the ground-breaking efforts of the early Pop artists
and the foundations they laid for monumental artists like Blake to come.
