Soft sculpture

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Soft Sculpture by Janet Echelman

Soft sculpture is a type of sculpture or three dimensional form that incorporates materials such as cloth, fur, foam rubber, plastic, paper, fibre or similar supple and nonrigid materials. Soft sculptures can be stuffed, sewn, draped, stapled, glued, hung, draped or woven. These materials and techniques distinguish soft sculptures from more traditional hard sculptures made from, for example, stone, bronze or wood that are then carved or modelled. [1]

Soft sculpture is an old German technique very popular in Japan with artists like Yayoi Kusama boosting the heritages of this new and innovative medium for interior designers.

Soft sculptures were popularised in the 1960s by artists such as Claes Oldenburg and Yayoi Kusama. Claes Oldenburg and other members of the Art Pop Movement are accredited with the creation of soft sculpture. [2] During this time period members of the Art Pop Movement created art with themes of the times such as pop culture, consumerism, and mass production. [2] Oldenburg specifically would take average everyday items and make them larger than life; one of his most notable works of this time is the Floor Burger. [2] The Floor Burger is primarily made out of canvas filled with rubber foam and cardboard. It contains a large hamburger patty nestled in the middle of two tan buns with a pickle for garnish on the top. [2] Yayoi Kusama also is responsible for the rise of soft sculpture in the 1960s, although she believes that Claes Oldenburg copied some of her pieces. [3] One of her most popular soft sculpture works is entitled Accumulation No. 1. Kusama hand sewed and painted projections she called "phalluses," and placed them on an armchair. After this works first exhibition, people were surprised that Kusama had sexualized an everyday object. [4]

Soft sculpture was also a key feature during the 1970s in Post-Minimalist art. [5] Artists during this time would create sculptures using materials that they had around them. [5] A key artist during this time was Eva Hesse. One of Eva's most popular works does not have a title. It is composed of latex, string, rope and wire suspended from the ceiling. [6]

The following is a list of other artists who have worked with soft sculpture:

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yayoi Kusama</span> Japanese artist and writer (born 1929)

Yayoi Kusama is a Japanese contemporary artist who works primarily in sculpture and installation, and is also active in painting, performance, video art, fashion, poetry, fiction, and other arts. Her work is based in conceptual art and shows some attributes of feminism, minimalism, surrealism, Art Brut, pop art, and abstract expressionism, and is infused with autobiographical, psychological, and sexual content. She has been acknowledged as one of the most important living artists to come out of Japan, the world's top-selling female artist, and the world's most successful living artist. Her work influenced that of her contemporaries, including Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marjorie Strider</span> American painter, sculptor and performance artist (1931 - 2014)

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Clothespin is a weathering steel sculpture by Claes Oldenburg, located at Centre Square, 1500 Market Street, Philadelphia. It is designed to appear as a monumental black clothespin. Oldenburg is noted for his attempts to democratize art with large stylized sculptures of everyday objects, and the location of Clothespin, above Philadelphia's City Hall subway station, allows thousands of commuters to view it on a daily basis. It was commissioned in May 1974 by developer Jack Wolgin as part of the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority's percent for art program, and was dedicated June 25, 1976.

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Dan Lam is an American sculptor of Vietnamese ancestry, best known for her "drippy" sculptures and use of vibrant color. Using non-traditional materials of polyurethane foam, acrylic paint and epoxy resin, her finished work often dangles over shelf ledges, contrasting emotions of desire and disgust. Lam lives and works in Dallas.

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"Claes Oldenburg" is an art documentary episode featured on The South Bank Show in May 26, 1996, produced by LWT on Claes Oldenburg who was a Swedish-American sculptor known for his pop art, soft sculpture, happenings, and later public art installations with his wife and collaborator Coosje van Bruggen The documentary, currently available on Arthaus Video was directed and produced by Gerald Fox and features Oldenburg, Roy Lichtenstein, James Rosenquist, and Jim Dine.

References

  1. Gipson, Ferren (2022). Women's work: from feminine arts to feminist art. London: Frances Lincoln. ISBN   978-0-7112-6465-6.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Soft Sculpture". Art Gallery of Ontario. Retrieved 2022-04-01.
  3. "Pop Art Ripoffs: The 3 Yayoi Kusama Artworks That Warhol, Oldenburg, and Samaras Copied in the '60s". Artspace. Retrieved 2022-04-23.
  4. "Yayoi Kusama. Accumulation No. 1. 1962 | MoMA". The Museum of Modern Art. Retrieved 2022-04-23.
  5. 1 2 "Soft Sculpture". Artsy. Retrieved 2022-04-01.
  6. "Eva Hesse | No title (1969-1970) | Artsy". www.artsy.net. Retrieved 2022-04-23.