CLAES OLDENBURG

Oldenburg’s earliest body of work in this exhibition, The Street (1959–60), channels influences from everyday modes of drawing, such as urban graffiti and children’s art, into visceral portrayals of city life. Oldenburg turned to comics and advertising illustration as inspiration for his two subsequent series, The Store (1961–64) and The Home (1963–69), which include exuberant drawings of food, clothing, and household appliances that informed his colorful, cartoonish “soft” sculptures. In 1965 Oldenburg began sketching enlarged versions of his favorite commonplace items—including fire hydrants, baked potatoes, and teddy bears—towering over cityscapes. Although these works were titled Proposed Colossal Monuments (1965–69), they remained fanciful notions until Oldenburg began building large-scale, outdoor sculptures in 1969.

Claes Oldenburg: Drawn from Life is organized by Antonia Pocock, Curatorial Assistant.