CHICAGO, IL (Catholic Online) - The showcase begins with the 1961 piece called "Look Mickey, I've Hooked a Big One!!" The piece is considered an inspiration and a landmark of which helped transform commercial art to fine art. The exhibition has nearly 170 paintings, sculptures, and drawings from 1950 to the time of his death in 1997, at the age of 73.

According to the museum, "Roy Lichtenstein: A Retrospective" is the "first major retrospective to broadly examine his art since his death."

The exhibition opened earlier in May, and will be open until Sept. 3. It will then travel to Washington, London, and Paris over the next year. There are works that are well-known, as well as pictures and works of art that have rarely ever been seen.

"Roy was able to show us something new about the world in which we live and about ourselves and how we see the world," said James Rondeau, the exhibit's co-curator."

Lichtenstein also did paintings that were similar to the works of Picasso, Mondrian, Leger, Monet, and Cezanne. His originals, however, are being sold for millions of dollars.

Dorothy Lichtenstein, the artist's widow, viewed the exhibit exclaiming that even she hadn't seen some of his works since back in the 60's. She wishes the show to give people a wider range of appreciation for her late husband's work.

"I hope people come away realizing that he did more than some cartoon frames," Lichtenstein said.

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