20 Pieces of Art Every Person Over 20 Should Recognize

From starry nights to Campbell's Soup cans, these images are the art world's most iconic.

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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You don’t have to be an art historian to know what the Mona Lisa looks like. In fact, you don’t have to know a thing about art at all. Like the most famous literary references or movie quotes, a basic knowledge of the world’s most iconic works of art is essential to improving one’s cultural literacy, especially in a time where visual art and pop culture seem closer together than ever.

While there are dozens of other great works of art and artists that could be easily added to this list, these are the 20 Pieces of Art Every Person Over 20 Should Recognize.

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Grant Wood American Gothic, 1930

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Leonardo da Vinci The Last Supper, 1495-1498

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Andy Warhol Campbell's Soup Cans, 1962

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Gustav Klimt The Kiss, 1908-1909

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Claude Monet Water Lilies, 1919

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Rembrandt van Rijn The Night Watch, 1642

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Pablo Picasso Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, 1907

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Jackson Pollock Autumn Rhythm, 1950

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Damien Hirst The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living, 1991

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Diego Velázquez Las Meninas, 1656

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Georges Seurat A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, 1884

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Edward Hopper Nighthawks, 1942

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Michelangelo The Creation of Adam, 1512

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Auguste Rodin The Kiss, 1882

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Salvador Dalí The Persistence of Memory, 1931

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Jeff Koons Balloon Dog, 1994

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Johannes Vermeer Girl with a Pearl Earring, 1665

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Edvard Munch The Scream, 1893

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Vincent van Gogh Starry Night, 1889

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Leonardo da Vinci Mona Lisa, 1503-1506

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