The pop art movement that began in the 1950s was governed by the creative thinking of many pop art artists. Together forming the Independent Group, these artists went against the high brow culture of art to make it more accessible to the masses. In this article, we introduce to the ten most famous names in the world of pop. While there have been many pop art artists who have added impetus to the movement, time after time, these names are important for they introduced fresh styles and increased the reach and acceptance levels of this art form.

Andy Warhol: Any discussion on pop art is incomplete without the mention of this iconic artist. A major player in the movement, he instilled life into dull soup cans and painted portraits in the vivid colours of his imagination.

Blek le Rat: While few know him by this name, many are well versed with his graffiti art. Predominant on many walls, the graffiti style was founded by Blek le Rat. Known to be the ‘father of the stencil graffiti’, this Paris based pop art artist painted about social issues at public places. Even today graffiti is famous, both on public spaces as well as on canvas.

Banksy: Talk about street arts, and you talk about Banksy. One of the pioneers in the world of street art, this British based artist promoted satirical street art and dark humor. Seldom seen in person, Banksy’s work spoke a great deal on his political ideas.

Richard Hamilton: Richard Hamilton was a collage artist and painter based in Britain. He is associated with coining of the term ‘pop art’ and is known to have created some of the early works in this movement.

James Rosenquist: This American protagonist brought freshness to the world or art, when he introduced sign painting techniques to large-scale pop culture paintings. Usage of recognizable objects, advertising elements along with fine art, made him an important element of the movement.

Pixnit: This Boston based artist is an important yet elusive element of the street arts. Her painting style, distinct stenciling techniques and her methods of simultaneously beautifying and criticizing the social scenario was well noted in her works. She was also perhaps one of the very few female artists who took on to graffiti art, which she excelled in.

Billy Apple: Associated with both the British and American schools of popart, this artist worked with greats like Andy Warhol. He was also an important member of the conceptual art movement that happened at the same time.

Tom Wesselmann: This American pop artist worked in the areas of painting, collage and sculpture and was an important part of the movement. A notable aspect about him was that he never liked to be included as an American pop artist, calling his work more of an aesthetic use of daily objects.