The drawings by artist Robert Longo are a sensory experience: They are monumental, detailed and hard-hitting in their subject matter, which often includes critiques of power, social unrest and consumer capitalism.
Longo has spent his career exploring mediums as varied as the Photorealistic charcoal drawings for which he is best known and film direction. In all of his work, however, he draws inspiration from his deep background in sculpture. “I always think that drawing is a sculptural process. I always feel like I’m carving the image out rather than painting the image. I’m carving it out with erasers and tools like that,” he once said.
The Long Island, New York, native attended high school with a man who was shot at Kent State University while protesting the U.S. invasion of Cambodia during the Vietnam War in 1970, and the famous image of this man lying dead on the ground influenced Longo so deeply that he began to consider all art political. Longo attended Buffalo State College, where he met and became friends with artist Cindy Sherman, and later the two moved to New York City together.
Longo’s revered work includes his charcoal and graphite “Men in the Cities” drawings. The Photorealist series, which debuted at Metro Pictures gallery in Manhattan in 1981, depicted people in formal business clothing. Posing in suspended animation in unusual contortions, the figures take on a choreographic quality and represent the career-minded “yuppies” of the era.
“Men in the Cities” was inspired by punk rock music and decades later has been cited as a visual reference for the opening sequence of the popular television drama Mad Men. The work was among the most recognizable and iconic of the Pictures Generation — the movement by artists who came of age in the 1970s and were disillusioned by the social and political conditions of the time. In 2014, Longo created 12 charcoal drawings for a series titled “Gang of Cosmos,” which were black-and-white depictions of famous Abstract Expressionist works by artists like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning and Lee Krasner.
Through his provocative, detailed and highly precise prints, drawings, photography and sculpture, Longo continues to challenge traditional sources of power and authority.
Find original Robert Longo art on 1stDibs.
Robert Longo, Janet (from Men in the Cities) - Signed Photograph
By Robert Longo
Located in Hamburg, DE
Robert Longo (American, born 1953) Janet (from Men in the Cities), 1981/2016 Medium: Archival pigment print in colours, on Canson Platine fiber paper Dimensions: 47.7 x 35.5 cm Editi...
Archival Pigment
Robert Longo, Eric, NYC: Signed C-Print and Artist's Book
By Robert Longo
Located in Hamburg, DE
Robert Longo (b.1953) Eric, NYC, 1980, 2009 Medium: C-print on photo paper (incl. artist’s book) Dimensions: 25.5 x 18.5 cm (10 × 7 1/4 in) Edition of 100: Hand-signed in black pen
C Print
$700
H 18 in W 24 in D 0.1 in
Untitled (Nr. 0572) Photography 18" x 24" Edition of 24 by Rowan Daly
By Rowan Daly
Located in Culver City, CA
Untitled (Nr. 0572) Photography 18" x 24" Edition of 24 by Rowan Daly Unframed - ships rolled in a tube Signed and numbered by the artist Comes with COA issued by the artist Ben C...
Archival Pigment
$700
H 18 in W 24 in D 0.1 in
Untitled (Nr. 0442) Photography 18" x 24" Edition of 20 by Rowan Daly
By Rowan Daly
Located in Culver City, CA
Untitled (Nr. 0442) Photography 18" x 24" Edition of 20 by Rowan Daly Unframed - ships rolled in a tube Signed and numbered by the artist Comes with COA issued by the artist Ben C...
Archival Pigment
$2,000Sale Price|20% Off
H 48 in W 32 in
Peter Andrew Lusztyk - Lego People, Photography 2021, Printed After
By Peter Andrew Lusztyk
Located in Stamford, CT
Lego People Digital C-Print / Archival Pigment Print Edition of 20 48" x 32" 56" x 40" (Framed Size) “Collectible” series is a macro level exploration of coins, bills and stamps. Th...
Archival Pigment
$2,200Sale Price|20% Off
H 40 in W 60 in
Peter Andrew Lusztyk - Detroit I, Photography 2020, Printed After
By Peter Andrew Lusztyk
Located in Stamford, CT
Detroit I Digital C-Print / Archival Pigment Print Available sizes: 40 x 60 in - Edition of 10 60 x 90 in - Edition of 5 Since its inception, Lusztyk’s Interchanges project has take...
Archival Pigment
$2,200Sale Price|20% Off
H 40 in W 60 in
Peter Andrew Lusztyk - Pyla III, Photography 2020, Printed After
By Peter Andrew Lusztyk
Located in Stamford, CT
Pyla III Digital C-Print / Archival Pigment Print Available sizes: 40 x 60 in - Edition of 10 60 x 90 in - Edition of 5 Locations from around the world. Since this print will be sh...
Archival Pigment
$1,200
H 24 in W 16 in
Peter Andrew Lusztyk - Astro, Photography 2021, Printed After
By Peter Andrew Lusztyk
Located in Stamford, CT
Lego "Astro" Digital C-Print / Archival Pigment Print Edition of 20 “Collectible” series is a macro level exploration of coins, bills and stamps. These images are created with the i...
Archival Pigment
$10,500
H 47.24 in W 40.94 in
Ali Alışır - Hybrid Souls 39, Photography 2024, Printed After
By Ali Alışır
Located in Stamford, CT
Series: Hydrid Souls Archival Pigment Print Edition of 2 + 2 AP Available Size: 47.24" x 40.94" 55.11" x 47.63" 62.99" x 62.99" Born in Istanbul in 1978, Ali Alışır started his g...
Archival Pigment
$2,200Sale Price|20% Off
H 40 in W 60 in
Peter Andrew Lusztyk - Albany I, Photography 2020, Printed After
By Peter Andrew Lusztyk
Located in Stamford, CT
Albany I Digital C-Print / Archival Pigment Print Available sizes: 40 x 60 in 60 x 90 in Since its inception, Lusztyk’s Interchanges project has taken the artist all over the world ...
Archival Pigment
$2,200Sale Price|20% Off
H 40 in W 60 in
Peter Andrew Lusztyk - Balloon I, Photography 2020, Printed After
By Peter Andrew Lusztyk
Located in Stamford, CT
Balloon I Digital C-Print / Archival Pigment Print Available sizes: 40 x 60 in - Edition of 10 60 x 90 in - Edition of 5 Locations from around the world. Since this print will be s...
Archival Pigment
$1,800
H 36 in W 27 in
Peter Andrew Lusztyk - Canada 38 Mushroom (Green), 2021, Printer After
By Peter Andrew Lusztyk
Located in Stamford, CT
Canada 38 Mushroom (Green) Digital C-Print / Archival Pigment Print Edition of 20 per size Available sizes: 36 x 27 “Collectible” series is a macro level exploration of coins, bills...
Archival Pigment
$12,000
H 47.24 in W 36.61 in
Ali Alışır - Hybrid Souls 25, Photography 2024, Printed After
By Ali Alışır
Located in Stamford, CT
Series: Hydrid Souls Archival Pigment Print Edition of 2 + 2 AP Available Size: 47.24" x 36.61" 55.11" x 42.51" 62.99" x 48.81" Born in Istanbul in 1978, Ali Alışır started his g...
Archival Pigment
$10,500
H 47.24 in W 40.94 in
Ali Alışır - Hybrid Souls 41, Photography 2024, Printed After
By Ali Alışır
Located in Stamford, CT
Series: Hydrid Souls Archival Pigment Print Edition of 2 + 2 AP Available Size: 47.24" x 40.94" 55.11" x 47.63" 62.99" x 62.99" Born in Istanbul in 1978, Ali Alışır started his g...
Archival Pigment
STUDY OF FERGUSON RIOT COPS
By Robert Longo
Located in Aventura, FL
Hand signed, titled and dated by the artist. Original ink and charcoal on vellum paper. Framed size approx 30.75 x 34 inches. Artwork is in excellent condition. Certificate of Auth...
Paper, Ink