Claes OldenburgLarger than Life

Biography• Born 1929 – Stockholm,

Sweden

• Studied at Yale and the Art Institute of Chicago

• Wife/Business Partner Dutch/American artist Coosje van Bruggen

• Created 45 Large Scale Public Installation artworks all over the world

• Van Bruggen died of breast cancer in 2009

Early Work

Performance art

Soft Sculptureswith Pop Art Aesthetic

Mechanical Installation Art

Brought a whimsical aesthetic objectiveto a “dull” abstract expressionist period in art

Performance Art• A performance

presented to an audience, either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous, with or without audience participation, live or via media

Installation Art/Public Art• 3-D works that are site-specific and designed to

transform the perception of a space

Ice Bag, Claes Oldenburg, Programmed kinetic sculpture of polyvinyl, fiberglass, wood, with mechanical movements, Installation Art, Pop Art Movement

Dropped Cone, Claes Oldenburg, Stainless and galvanized steels, fiber-reinforced plastic, balsawood, Cologne, Germany, Installation Art, Pop Art Movement

Free Stamp, Claes Oldenburg, Steel and aluminum painted with polyurethane enamel Cleveland, Ohio, Installation Art, Pop Art Movement

Spoonbridge and Cherry, Stainless steel and aluminum painted with polyurethane enamel Minneapolis, Minnesota, Installation Art, Pop Art Movement

Saw, Sawing, Claes Oldenburg, Steel, epoxy resin, fiber-reinforced plastic, Big Sight, Tokyo,

Installation Art, Pop Art Movement