It was sad to hear that Claes Oldenburg’s wife, whom he also worked hand-in-hand with on his art, died this past January. To think of him working alone, without her, reminds me of my own grandparents’ years that they had to live without their significant others. Although in my family, the women all outlast the men. It also reminds me that different artists work best in different kinds of environments. Some close the doors and hole themselves up and others open their studios and prefer the presence of others. Warhol, obviously, was the ultimate open door artist. In fact, it could be said that, later on at least, he had no ideas of his own, but to reflect the world that swirled around him. He let his own fame become his art. And what is fame without the audience?
To have been part of the Pop Art movement and remained alive, innovative, new and truly relevant has been nearly the sole proprietary space of Claes Oldenburg – and the man knows how to fill a space. The show at The Whitney, in NY, features a number of works by Oldenburg and I’m itching to go see it. It is, in some ways, a retrospective, but seems to be marking a turning point in the 80-year old’s life. How his art changes is something I am more than curious to see.