About the Artwork
Franz West invited the public not only to view his art but also to physically engage with it. As the title Garden Pouf suggests, the artist intended for this fun sculpture to be treated as a functional piece of art. Installed on Undershaft in front of Hiscox and St Helen’s Church, the piece received a lot of attention from children and visitors. Franz West has exhibited internationally for more than three decades in galleries, museums and major festivals.
Year: 2010
Copyright the artist, Courtesy of Gagosian Gallery.
Material
Lacquered Aluminium
Artist Biography
Franz West
Franz West lived and worked in Vienna, where he was born in 1947.
West began his career in mid-1960s Vienna when a local movement
called Actionism was in full swing. West’s earliest sculptures,
performances, and collages were a reaction to this movement.
In the early 1970s, West began making a series of small, portable
sculptures called “Adaptives” (“Paßtücke”). In many ways, his
large-scale aluminum sculptures are simply overgrown versions
of the “Adaptives.” but they also relate directly to his installations,
where West makes furniture. West had the ability to make comfortable
and colorfully upholstered couches and chairs which transform
galleries, museums, and public spaces into lounge-like, sociable
environments for viewing art.
West has exhibited internationally for more than three decades in
galleries and museums, and at major festivals.