A massive fire at James Rosenquist’s compound in Florida seems to have had little damage to his art. Two homes, an office and his studio were destroyed in the fire but not a great number of his works. Though the ones that were lost are impressive in their size:
The Times said that the fire began around 3 a.m. on Saturday and was believed to be contained when it flared up again and exploded a propane tank in Mr. Rosenquist’s studio. After controlling the blaze on Sunday afternoon, firefighters told The Times that it had covered 62 acres and that they considered it suspicious and were investigating its cause. Among the works Mr. Rosenquist said he lost was a mural commissioned by the government of France that measured 133 feet high by 24 feet wide.
Pop Artist’s Works Lost in Studio Fire (New York Times/Arts, Briefly)