Lot 152
Claes Oldenburg (American born in Sweden, 1929-2022). Proposal for a Colossal Monument in the form of a Typewriter Eraser for Alcatraz Island, color offset lithograph on wove paper, 1975. Hand-signed "Oldenburg" in pencil at lower center. Handwritten "L.P. 10" (L.P. stands for the publisher Landfall Press) in pencil at lower left. A hand-signed, rare proof of Claes Oldenburg's proposal for a Colossal Monument in the form of a Typewriter Eraser for Alcatraz Island published by Landfall Press in 1975. Although this monumental sculpture was never built on Alcatraz, Oldenburg's vision was later realized in large-scale sculptures at other locations such as the National Sculpture Garden at the National Gallery of Art. Washington D.C. and the Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach, FL. According to the National Gallery of Art in reference to the National Sculpture Garden's "Typewriter Eraser, Scale X 3/3" (1999) by Oldenburg and his wife, Coosje van Bruggen (American born in Netherlands, 1942-2009): "Before the invention of the delete key on the computer keyboard, the humble typewriter eraser allowed people to rub out mistakes on typing paper. The end with the pink wheel erased the error; the blue brush swept away the eraser 'crumbs. Claes Oldenburg was intrigued by this item from his childhood. He and Coosje van Bruggen recreated the eraser at enormous scale, giving it a windswept motion to ensure it would not be forgotten." (source: National Gallery of Art website) Size: 31" L x 24" W (78.7 cm x 61 cm) Size: 33.25" L x 26.25" W (84.5 cm x 66.7 cm) Size (frame): 33.25" L x 26.25" W (84.5 cm x 66.7 cm)
About the Artist: Claes Oldenburg was a renowned Pop and Conceptual artist best known for his monumental sculptures and soft sculptures of ordinary, everyday objects such as the typewriter eraser that is the subject of this featured piece. Oldenburg's "Typewriter Eraser" (1976), number 2 of an edition of 3, was sold for $2.2 million at Christie's New York in 2009. Oldenburg also won the Wolf Prize in the Arts in 1989 and the National Medal of Arts in 2000. He has received honorary degrees from Oberlin College in 1970; the Art Institute of Chicago in 1979; Bard College in 1995; and Royal College of Art, London in 1996. In addition, he has received the following awards: Brandeis University Sculpture Award, 1971; Skowhegan Medal for Sculpture, 1972; Art Institute of Chicago, First Prize Sculpture Award, 72nd American Exhibition, 1976; Medal, American Institute of Architects, 1977; Wilhelm-Lehmbruck Prize for Sculpture, Duisburg, Germany, 1981; Brandeis University Creative Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, The Jack I. and Lillian Poses Medal for Sculpture, 1993; Rolf Schock Foundation Prize, Stockholm, Sweden, 1995. He was a member of the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters from 1975 until his death, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences since 1978.
PROVENANCE: East Coast collection, New York Gallery, New York City, New York, USA
Of Note: Another "Proposal for a Colossal Monument in the form of a Typewriter Eraser for Alcatraz Island" from the edition of 50 was sold for $2000 by Freeman's, Philadelphia, PA (lot 97) on October 30, 2019.
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Item #
195463
- Condition: Very Good. Hand-signed ""Oldenburg"" in pencil at lower center. Handwritten ""L.P. 10"" (L.P. stands for the publisher Landfall Press) in pencil at lower left. Artwork is mounted under plexiglass in a metal frame. Artwork has not been examined outside the frame but appears to be in very good vintage condition.
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