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
Untitled (Janet)
By Robert Longo
Located in New York, NY
An iconic and highly collectible image from Robert Longo’s, Men in the Cities series, this color print was taken in 1981 and print again by the artist in 2016. A chromogenic print o...
C Print
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
$300
H 21.5 in W 21.5 in D 2.5 in
Dream of Saint Sebastian framed giclee Paula Craioveanu
By Paula Craioveanu
Located in Forest Hills, NY
“ Dream of Saint Sebastian “ giclee print On Hahnemuhle paper, edition 3 of 20 Artist Statement "I started by painting interiors, being interested in space and perspective through m...
C Print
Amazon framed giclee Paula Craioveanu 3/20
By Paula Craioveanu
Located in Forest Hills, NY
“ Amazon “ giclee print On Hahnemuhle paper, edition 3 of 20 Artist Statement "I started by painting interiors, being interested in space and perspective through my studies. These s...
C Print
$700
H 24 in W 18 in D 0.1 in
Untitled (Nr. 4564) Photography 24" x 18" Edition of 20 by Rowan Daly
By Rowan Daly
Located in Culver City, CA
Untitled (Nr. 4564) Photography 24" x 18" 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
$581
H 9.45 in W 13.39 in D 0.04 in
Wind Power (California Badlands) - Polaroid, Contemporary, Desert, Dream
By Stefanie Schneider
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
Wind Power (California Badlands) - 2021 24x34cm, Edition of 10, Archival C-Print, based on the Polaroid. Certificate and Signature label. Artist Inventory No. 4595. Not mounte...
Archival Paper, Photographic Paper, C Print, Color, Polaroid
$4,400
H 30 in W 40 in D 0.01 in
Jake Chessum 'Amy Winehouse Camden Town Launderett' Signed Limited Edition Print
By Jake Chessum
Located in London, GB
Kate Moss Amy Winehouse Camden Town Launderette III by Jake Chessum ‘In a now closed launderette on Camden Parkway. This was at the end of the day as it was getting dark. We didn’t ...
C Print, Color
$500
H 31.5 in W 29.25 in D 1.625 in
After Edvard Munch, "Anxiety" poster print
By Edvard Munch
Located in New York, NY
After Edvard Munch (1863-1944) Angst, originally executed in 1896; this reproduction likely 21st century Publisher unknown Digital print (?) Sight: 22 1/2 x 20 1/8 in. Framed: 31 1/2...
C Print
$350
H 7.88 in W 7.88 in D 0.04 in
Caitlin aka Jane Bond III Heavenly Falls - based on a Polaroid Original
By Stefanie Schneider
Located in Morongo Valley, CA
'Caitlin aka Jane Bond III' (Heavenly Falls) - 2016 20x20cm, Edition of 10, Archival C-Print based on the Polaroid, Not mounted. Certificate and signature label, artist inventor...
C Print, Color, Polaroid
$204
H 15.75 in W 20.48 in D 1.38 in
Bandstand III, Eastbourne, UK - Black and White Vintage Photography
By Samuel Field
Located in Cambridge, GB
'Bandstand', captured on a visit to his grandparents at the British seaside in Eastbourne, this collection by Samuel Field is a beautiful reminder of days gone by. This artwork is a...
Photographic Paper, Black and White, C Print, Silver Gelatin
$3,750
H 40 in W 60 in
Peter Andrew Lusztyk - Toronto, Photography 2020, Printed After
By Peter Andrew Lusztyk
Located in Stamford, CT
Toronto 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 taken ...
Archival Pigment
$3,750
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
$3,750
H 40 in W 60 in
Peter Andrew Lusztyk - Montreal, Photography 2020, Printed After
By Peter Andrew Lusztyk
Located in Stamford, CT
Montreal 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 tak...
Archival Pigment
$3,750
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
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