Players Dracula Grande
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View on museum website →Medium
lithograph (stone and aluminum) in black and gray on Magnani Italia paper
Dimensions
sheet: 13.5 x 37.5 cm (5 5/16 x 14 3/4 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Dorothy J. and Benjamin B. Smith
Accession Number
1983.18.283
Art Historical Context
Billy Al Bengston's *Players Dracula Grande* (1968) is a striking lithograph that captures the artist's playful fusion of pop culture and graphic boldness. Created during the vibrant late-1960s Los Angeles art scene, where Bengston was a key figure in the "Cool School" alongside artists like Ed Ruscha and Larry Bell, this print showcases his interest in sleek, modern imagery. The enigmatic title evokes cigarette branding ("Players") and gothic iconography (Dracula), hinting at Bengston's ironic nods to consumer culture and fantasy, rendered in stark black and gray tones on luxurious Magnani It...
About the Artist
Billy Al Bengston
Billy Al Bengston, born on June 7, 1934, in Dodge City, Kansas, embodied the sun-soaked, rebellious spirit of postwar Los Angeles after his family relocated there in 1948. His artistic training began at Los Angeles City College in 1952, where he studied ceramics under Bernard Kester. He then pursued painting under Richard Diebenkorn and Saburo Hasegawa at the California College of Arts and Crafts ...