Claes Oldenburg

Oldenburg is a Swedish artist born in the year 1929. He became an American citizen after the year 1950. He graduated from Yale University in 1951 and then registered to the Art Institute in Chicago. He was attracted by environmental art through Allan Kaprow, and after several years, in 1959 he exhibited wood sculptures, newspaper structures and painted papier-mache objects. 

Giant BLT (Bacon, lettuce, tomato) - Claes Oldenburg - 1963

This Giant BLT sculpture is composed of nineteen separate parts. The bread, olive, bacon, lettuce, and tomato are made of vinyl stuffed with kapok, and the toothpick is made of wood. Claes Oldenburg makes sculptures of ordinary objects, and in the process, he changes them in various ways, including their size and scale. Since the early 1960s, he has transformed all kinds of everyday objects, including home and office appliances, food, clothing, and musical instruments. This type of chaire encourages the audience to see familiar things in unexpected ways.

'Floor Burger' was made with fabric. Oldenburg was helped by his wife, Patty Mucha, a skilled seamstress. Claes was inspired by the grand pianos in midtown showrooms and luxury cars. Before using the fabric material, he was concerned about what to work with. He thought about using plaster but it was an ill-suited material and very fragile so that is why they chose fabric in the end. This sculpture along with several others was exhibited in the Green Gallery in September 1962. 

Other sculptures which were also exhibited include:

Floor Cone - Claes Oldenburg - 1962

Floor Cake - Claes Oldenburg - 1962

References:

- The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), 2014, 'Claes Oldenburg' [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2013/oldenburg/ [Accessed at: 25 January 2014]

- RoGallery, 2013, 'Claes Oldenburg - Swedish/American' [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.rogallery.com/Oldenburg_Claes/oldenberg_bio.htm [Accessed at 25 January 2014]

- The New York Times, 2009, 'Going Softly into a Parallel Universe' [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/17/arts/design/17kino.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 [Accessed 25 January 2014]