Among Lichtenstein's recurring subjects, the brushstroke is perhaps his most enduring motif. In a parody of the painterly gesture closely associated with Abstract Expressionism, he presents the brushstroke--the principal 'signature' of the fine artist--as an object in its own right, a sort of visual pun frozen in time and space. Set against a field of colored dots, Lichtenstein's motif mimics the photomechanical printing methods commonly used to produce comic strips, underscoring both his interest in Pop art soruce material and preference for the impersonal and machine-made image.