Artist
Claes Oldenburg
1929–2022 · Swedish-born American · Based in New York, USA (d. 2022)
- Yale University
- Latin School of Chicago
- Soft Sculpture
- Monumental Public Sculpture
- Drawing
- Performance
Claes Oldenburg transformed everyday commodities into unstable sculptures through shifts of scale, material and context. The Store, begun in 1961, filled a storefront with painted plaster goods; soon afterward soft fabric versions of toilets, food and household objects made solid things sag. With Coosje van Bruggen he later realized monumental public sculptures around the world.
Sculpture; drawing; installation; performance
Gallery Representation
Artist Films
Installation of 'Soft Toilet' by Claes Oldenburg: Behind the Scenes | Sixties Surreal
Whitney Museum of American ArtOfficial source ↗ (opens in a new window)
Whitney Focus presents Claes Oldenburg's "Giant BLT"
Whitney Museum of American ArtOfficial source ↗ (opens in a new window)
Whitney Focus presents Claes Oldenburg's "Ice Bag-Scale C"
Whitney Museum of American ArtOfficial source ↗ (opens in a new window)
Major Works
- 1961The Store
- 1962Floor Burger
- 1962Floor Cake
- 1966Soft Toilet
- 1963Giant BLT
- 1969Lipstick (Ascending) on Caterpillar Tracks
- 1976Clothespin
- 1985–88Spoonbridge and Cherry
- 1992–94Shuttlecocks
- 2001Dropped Cone
Museums & Public Collections
Interviews & Writing
- Museum-quality video search →RESEARCH QUEUEvideo
Related Artists