The Whitney Museum of American Art is set to open a major exhibition, “Roy Lichtenstein: Like New,” on October 11, presenting a broad survey of the work of the influential Pop artist Roy Lichtenstein, who passed away in 1997. This will be the artist’s first New York retrospective in over three decades, prompted in part by the Whitney’s receipt of a significant gift from the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation, which included 400 artworks and the donation of the artist’s former Greenwich Village home and studio.

The show aims to reexamine Lichtenstein’s legacy beyond his well-known comic book–inspired imagery and signature Ben-Day dots. Curator and artist Alex Da Corte, working alongside Whitney curator Meg Onli, hopes to offer fresh perspectives on Lichtenstein by exploring his strong conceptual underpinnings and connections to broader artistic movements. Da Corte noted that while Lichtenstein is often framed exclusively as a Pop artist, his work also reflects engagement with conceptual practices and movements like Fluxus, known for its experimental, do-it-yourself ethos. Lichtenstein’s participation in a 1963 “happening” and his association with figures such as Allan Kaprow underline this multifaceted approach. The exhibition also highlights Lichtenstein’s complex relationship with appropriation, showing how he both borrowed from and influenced later artists who questioned originality and authorship.

Central to the exhibition are some of Lichtenstein’s most iconic works, including “Girl With Ball” (1961) and “Drowning Girl” (1963), alongside less frequently seen pieces like the nearly 96-foot “Greene Street Mural,” which has been meticulously recreated for the show and will be destroyed after its run, underscoring the artist’s interest in impermanence. Other components include a reconstruction of Lichtenstein’s 1962 debut at Castelli Gallery, displayed with original lighting and flooring, and a video work by Da Corte that plays with Lichtenstein’s conceptual influences, featuring Da Corte portraying Lichtenstein’s professor Hoyt Sherman.

Da Corte’s process of recreating murals and paintings led him to a deeper appreciation of Lichtenstein’s tactile approach, noting that the artist’s painted dots were raised like Braille, emphasizing a commitment to handmade craftsmanship despite the industrial aesthetics. Onli highlighted that this ephemeral quality contrasts with Lichtenstein’s current position in the art market, where his works have commanded soaring auction prices in recent years.

The Whitney’s director, Scott Rothkopf, emphasized the decision to engage an artist-curator of color with a diverse background as a deliberate choice to address the museum’s evolving audience, which has become younger and more diverse through free admission programs. Rothkopf acknowledged that many visitors may not automatically share the traditional view of Lichtenstein as a canonical figure, and that Da Corte and Onli’s perspectives could bridge generational and cultural differences.

Onli expressed optimism that the Whitney’s digital-native audience, attuned to the ways images proliferate and are processed in contemporary life, will connect naturally to Lichtenstein’s examination of media and visual consumption. Both curators see the exhibition not only as a historical reassessment but as a timely dialogue about image-making that continues to resonate in today’s media-saturated environment.