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Pop Art in Decoration: Everything you Need to Know

4 minutes
This is a style full of vibrancy, color and energy. When combined with decorative items and furniture, it keeps sixties pop culture icons alive in everyday elements.
Pop Art in Decoration: Everything you Need to Know
Last update: 17 November, 2018

Pop art in decoration isn’t just a passing trend. It’s a reflection of a huge artistic movement.

This movement has not just revolutionized the world of art and media, but also the world of interior decorating. You’ve probably already seen pop art influenced items in homes, offices and even in stores.

In this article, we’ll tell you all about this type of decoration so that you can achieve the look in your home too.

What is pop art?

Pop art is an artistic movement which emerged in the US and England in the late fifties and sixties.

It was inspired by mainstream media, comics, objects, and brands that were popular at the time.

Characterized by its daring style, pop art takes its inspiration from pop culture images that were famous at the time.

Many decorating experts agree that this style is the complete opposite of minimalism.

Part of the charm of this style is that the usual norms and rules of decoration no longer exist. Pop art comes from the desire to throw out the conservative rules of design and create something new and exciting.

Thanks to the use of bright, bold colors, this is a style that will fill any room with energy and life.

Pop art in decoration

The color

When it comes to pop art, color is fundamental. The use of bright, bold and clashing colors is at the very heart of this artistic style.

The use of contrasting colors isn’t optional – it’s essential.

However, it’s easy for these color combinations to go wrong, which is why we recommend that you only use pop art-style to add a touch of color to a neutral environment. 

Remember, the aim isn’t to create crazy, psychedelic combinations, but to achieve a balanced overall look.

The most common colors in pop art decoration are red, purple, yellow, green, orange, fuchsia, and white.

This decorative style also often features geometric shapes like circles, squares, triangles, and colorful lines, especially when it comes to wallpaper.

Furniture

Pop art furniture is really eye-catching, so we’d recommend that you choose furniture that works in harmony with your wall color.

To do this, you need to create a sense of balance. So, if you have brightly colored wallpaper, you’ll need to choose more neutral colored furniture and vice versa.

Another notable characteristic of this style of furniture is the shape. It is in no way conventional and is sure to surprise and delight your guests. When it comes to the shape, pop art furniture looks almost like traditional furniture, but with a twist.

Some figure

Remember, this furniture is inspired by an artistic movement, so the designs are a reflection of the designer’s creativity.

You can still buy original pieces, but you can also buy reproductions, which are much easier to find.

Some famous designers include Eames, Saarinen, Andy Warhol, and Jeff Koons.

Materials

The most common material in this decor is, without a shadow of a doubt, plastic.

This is because plastic is strong, flexible and cheap, which is why almost all pop art chairs are made from plastic.

The Panton chair was the world’s first ever molded plastic chair, and it’s a pop art classic.

Some figure

Decorative elements

As we’ve already mentioned, the use of color is fundamental in pop art decor, but designers also use a lot of famous images in their designs.

These images are a representation of pop culture.

It’s common to see images of movie or pop stars in different colors, as well as famous brands – such as Campbell’s tomato soup and Coca Cola –  from comics or adverts.

Some figure

If you decide you want this decor in your home, these images are must-have elements for your walls.

If you’re looking for inspiration, Andy Warhol paintings are a classic.

Some final advice 

It’s important to remember that, although this is a very colorful style, you don’t want to overfill your room with pop art. You need to create a sense of balance, and a good contrast of colors.

What’s more, if you want to use this style in your home, it’s best to introduce it gradually. That way, you’ll be able to tell whether or not this style is really for you.

This is a fun style, so don’t let it overwhelm you – redecorating your home is exciting, so enjoy it!

Pop art allows you to use your imagination and create unique and personal combinations.

Pop art decor is easy to combine with other styles, like industrial style decor.

Plus, unless you want to buy original pieces, achieving this look in your home doesn’t have to be expensive.

If you’re not too bothered about having original pieces, you can even make your own  pictures by printing out Andy Warhol style art or even an advert from the sixties and hanging it on your wall.

It’s really easy to add pop art elements to the decor in your home.