Claes Oldenburg

American · 1929–2022 · Painter, Printmaker

Claes Oldenburg was a Swedish-born American sculptor best known for his public art installations, typically featuring large replicas of everyday objects. Another theme in his… (Wikipedia)

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495lots offered1999–2026years recorded92%sold (445)$1.3kSign up free to seemedian price

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24 Open-Faced SandwichesPhillips · Nov 2024$793,750≈ £627,619≈ €750,378Sign up to see
"Ghost Wardrobe for M. M."Van Ham · Oct 2024€343,200≈ $380,472≈ £285,511Sign up to see
Punching BagPhillips · May 2019$200,000≈ £155,267≈ €178,843Sign up to see

Claes Oldenburg’s highest prices recorded at auction, ranked in US dollars at each sale-date exchange rate and shown in the currency of the sale (with the buyer’s premium where the house publishes it).

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489 results · page 13 of 13

Proposal for a Cathedral in the Form of a Sink Faucet for Lake Union, Seattle, Washington, 1972
Pananti · Jul 15, 2015 · Lot 755
Unsold / did not meet reserveEst. €300–500View at Pananti ↗
Proposal for a Civic Monument in the Form of Two Windows (A./P. 179), 1982
Lithograph · Paper · ed. 55/75
14 1/2 x 32in
Bonhams · Jun 29, 2015 · Lot 7074
Unsold / did not meet reserveEst. $1,500–2,500View at Bonhams ↗
Inverted Q, 1976
Sculpture
17 7/8 x 18 1/8 x 14 5/8 in. (45.6 x 46 x 37 cm)
Phillips · May 15, 2015 · Lot 202
Unsold / did not meet reserveEst. $30,000–50,000View at Phillips ↗
Inverted Q - Black, 1976-88
Sculpture · ed. AP
72 x 76 x 54 in. (182.9 x 193 x 137.2 cm.)
Phillips · May 15, 2014 · Lot 36
Unsold / did not meet reserveEst. $800,000–1,200,000View at Phillips ↗
Profiteroles Pyrenees Barcelona, 1991
Watercolor · Paper
2 3/4 x 5 in. (7 x 12.7 cm.)
Phillips · Nov 12, 2013 · Lot 190
Unsold / did not meet reserveEst. $15,000–20,000View at Phillips ↗
Proposal for a Cathedral in the Form of a Sink Faucet for Lake Union, Seattle, Washington, 1972
Pananti · Sep 22, 2013 · Lot 39075
Unsold / did not meet reserveEst. €450–750View at Pananti ↗
Proposal for a Cathedral in the Form of a Sink Faucet for Lake Union, Seattle, Washington, 1972
Pananti · May 25, 2013 · Lot 24
Unsold / did not meet reserveEst. €500–800View at Pananti ↗
Soft Drum Set (G. 417; A./P. 97), 1972
Lithograph · Paper · ed. 31/68
23 1/2 x 33 3/4in
Bonhams · Jul 22, 2012 · Lot 1119
Unsold / did not meet reserveEst. $900–1,200View at Bonhams ↗
Untitled
Lithograph
24.5" high x 19.25" wide
Clarke Auction Gallery · Apr 15, 2012 · Lot 212
Unsold / did not meet reserveEst. $1,000–1,500View at Clarke Auction Gallery ↗

Also offered, result not published (10)

Lots by Claes Oldenburg that were offered at auction where the house did not publish whether they sold. Not counted in any statistics.

Claes Oldenburg paintings (16)Claes Oldenburg acrylic paintings (10)Claes Oldenburg mixed media (3)Claes Oldenburg works on paper (29)Claes Oldenburg watercolors (8)Claes Oldenburg drawings (9)Claes Oldenburg prints (355)Claes Oldenburg etchings (25)Claes Oldenburg lithographs (217)Claes Oldenburg screenprints (62)Claes Oldenburg woodcuts & linocuts (7)Claes Oldenburg multiples (30)Claes Oldenburg sculpture (39)

Claes Oldenburg signature

165 catalogued lots by Claes Oldenburg record a signature line. The most common placement is lower right (53% of lots that state a placement). Most often: signed.

Placement

lower right18
lower left5
lower centre4
on the reverse4
on the base1
in the margin1

Form

signed76
initialled61
signed in pencil13
monogrammed11
signed and dated4

Signed with the artist's initials and dated "CO 91" lower right — Study for Soft Saxophone, Phillips, Feb 28, 2025
Signed with the artist's initials and dated 'CO 69' lower left — Ice Bags and Bananas, Phillips, Dec 4, 2024
Signed with the artist's initials and dated "CO. 85" lower right and titled "arcobaleno di tartive" upper edge — Arcobaleno di tartine, Phillips, Sep 23, 2024

Claes Oldenburg signature: all forms and examples →

About Claes Oldenburg

Claes Oldenburg was a Swedish-born American sculptor best known for his public art installations, typically featuring large replicas of everyday objects. Another theme in his work is soft sculpture versions of everyday objects. Many of his works were made in collaboration with his wife, Coosje van Bruggen, who died in 2009; they had been married for 32 years. Oldenburg lived and worked in New York City.

From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.