Straw Hat 3 is an original graphic by Alex Katz. The large scale portrait shows a brunette woman wearing a straw hat. She has her eyes closed. The series was created in Seoul, Korea for the exhibition Flowers at Thaddaeus Ropac. From the numerous oil paintings of Straw Hats, one motif was selected for the graphic edition presented here.

Straw Hat 3 is an exemplary work by Alex Katz. In this print, Katz’s clean lines and minimal approach to portraiture are on display. Of course, so does the monochrome background that is typical of his compositions. These portraits have no clear narrative – it is not important for the viewer to know the person or the story behind the artwork. What Alex Katz is trying to emphasize is actually the beauty of the subjects. The use of soft colors and emphasis on fashionable details in his paintings transforms the coldness of sharp lines, lack of detail, and flatness into a work of art that the viewer can enjoy. Straw Hat 3 is a pigment print similar to screen printing.

Reaching for the straw hat to complete our seaside look – or honestly, any summer outfit – is as instinctive to us as, say, breathing. Next to sunglasses, the straw hat is one of the most obvious accessories to protect us from the sun’s UV rays, but its origin is not entirely clear. When an item is as ubiquitous as a straw hat, it is virtually impossible to determine its original maker or even find the first documentation of its existence. It is believed to have appeared in Europe and Asia as early as the 15th century. In most Asian countries, including Japan, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam, rice field workers wore cone-shaped hats on their heads to protect themselves from the sun and rain. According to Vietnamese legend, the hat (nón lá) originated when a goddess descended from heaven wearing a giant hat made of four large leaves held together by bamboo sticks to protect people from a torrential downpour. Perhaps it’s its low-maintenance nature or its utilitarian roots, but the straw hat was (and still is) one of those incredibly rare garments that remarkably transcended age, class, gender, and fashion genres. Is it the most democratic fashion item? It certainly seems to be. There are currently other Alex Katz original prints besides Straw Hat 3 newly released: “Straw Hat 1”, “Sunrise”, “Halsey” and “Grace”.

Alex Katz / Pioneer of Pop Art

Alex Katz is especially famous for his figurative paintings: The son of Russian Jewish immigrants, he was born in New York in 1927. As a pioneer of Pop Art, he always concentrated on the essentials and early on he began to explore simplified forms and contrasting color compositions. His art is diverse, but always has beauty as its central theme. The artist can now look back on more than 200 solo and around 500 group exhibitions; his diverse works are part of over 100 collections worldwide. Alex Katz lives and works in New York and Maine.