Richard Edmund Prince

Richard Prince appropriated images taken from mass media, often turning to advertisements in an examination of their role in pop culture. This untitled photograph repurposes an image taken from a cigarette advertisement. Prince referred to such ads as “social science fiction”: depictions of larger-than-life people and situations constructed and circulated endlessly by the media. By focusing solely on the photograph without its accompanying text, Prince highlights the idealized view of the strapping cowboy, “The Marlboro Man.” The work speaks to advertising images’ capacity to seduce consumers through high production values and widespread distribution.