Girl in Yellow Shirt 

Patrick Nagel's "Girl in Yellow Shirt" embodies the smooth aesthetic of the 1980s, achieved through precise graphic techniques. Likely created as a serigraph print, each color would have been laid down separately using stencils. This process lends itself to the stark, flat planes of color Nagel favors. Note how the background is a seamless gradient, achieved by careful blending of inks. The figure's skin is rendered in a similarly impersonal way. The work's visual appeal stems from this streamlined production method, echoing the era's fascination with new wave aesthetics. In contrast to painterly brushstrokes, the printmaking process aligns with the cool detachment characteristic of consumer culture. Nagel's work, with its mass-produced, sleek style, challenges traditional notions of artistic expression. It asks us to consider the value of machine-made versus handmade imagery, and its connection with commerce.