How did James Rosenquist's F-111 respond to U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War?

As the 1960s progressed, James Rosenquist used his monumental 51-panel painting F-111 (1965) to reflect the growing U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.12

The work serves as a powerful commentary on the era by juxtaposing close-up views of the titular military aircraft—a fighter-bomber—with the image of an atomic explosion. By placing these symbols of military might and destruction against a backdrop of American consumer goods, Rosenquist created a complex, collagelike amalgamation that registered the darker side of the United States during that decade.12