Claes Oldenburg American, 1929-2022

Since the 1960s, Claes Oldenburg has worked at the forefront of the Conceptual and Pop art movements, and he’s best known for his monumental public sculptures of everyday objects. These pieces epitomize Oldenburg’s irreverent sense of humor and fascination with American consumerism, qualities which have also pervaded his performances, drawings, writings, and famous “soft sculptures” - cushiony, unserious objects that resemble diner foods and other symbols of Americana. Oldenburg's iconic Floor Burger (1962) is held in the collection of the Art Gallery of Ontario.

Oldenburg’s work can be found in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Moderna Museet, and the Centre Pompidou. Oldenburg often collaborated with his late wife, Coosje van Bruggen, who died in 2009 (via Artsy).