My struggle has been to return painting to the tangible object, which is like returning the personality to touching and feeling the world around it, to offset the tendency to vagueness and abstraction. To remind people of practical activity, to suggest the sense and not to escape from the senses.

Claes Oldenburg

Claes Oldenburg

Abstraction Activity Around Been Escape Feeling Like Object Offset Painting People Personality Practical Remind Return Returning Sense Senses Struggle Suggest Tangible Tendency Touching Vagueness Which World

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I like to treat paint as material - to daub it, drop it, let it slide. There was Action Painting, but I also compare it to paint effects found on the streets. This approach is superimposed on a sculptural surface that is also 'painterly.'

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Chicago has a strange metaphysical elegance of death about it.

— Claes Oldenburg

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