Claes Oldenburg The Sixties

Claes Oldenburg's contributions to the history of modern and contemporary art have been analyzed by many authors, and in varied critical contexts, but perhaps none has looked as closely at his work from the 1960s as do editors Hochdorfer (Museum moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien) and Schroder. In this generous new monograph, which accompanies an international exhibition of the artist's work from the watershed decade of the 1960s, readers have a beautifully illustrated, comprehensive study of Oldenburg's creative activities in this highly experimental era. Bringing together a detailed range of visual documentation (including some never-before-published materials contributed by Oldenburg himself) and thoughtful essays by noteworthy scholars like Benjamin Buchloh, this volume sheds light on the remarkable energy of Oldenburg and his collaborators in a style that is consistently insightful and accessible. Among its many virtues, this study offers an especially well-documented discussion of Oldenburg's happenings (like those of the Ray Gun Theater) and their relationship to his better-known sculptural works. As such, it will be of great interest to students, scholars, and a general audience. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and above; general readers. M. R. Freeman Western Oregon University

Swedish-born American artist Oldenburg (b. 1929) was launched into prominence in the late 1950s when he and his cohorts questioned and defied the then-reigning ethos of Abstract Expressionism. During the next decade his use of commercial culture as source material became a driving force behind the new phenomenon known as Pop Art. Edited by Hochdorfer (curator, Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien, Vienna; Cy Twombly: Photographs IV), this book accompanies an exhibition of Oldenburg's work created during the 1960s, when his eclectic activities made him a truly sui generis culture maker. Extending beyond his well-known sculptures of everyday objects, this book contains extended scholarly essays about Oldenburg's performances, drawings, wild conglomerations of kitsch, and influential early installation pieces. There are many candid photos of Oldenburg at work, both in the studio and on the street, with numerous interesting views of works in progress. VERDICT This scholarly, image-rich book will appeal to students of 20th-century modernism and the history of the 1960s.-Douglas F. Smith, Berkeley P.L., CA (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.