Erwin Wurm: Wear Me Out

A master of deadpan sculpture and the absurd gesture, the Austrian artist Erwin Wurm (born 1954) is tireless and brilliant in his constant reinvention of sculptural convention. With each new work Wurm seems to think sculpture completely afresh, and always with materials readily to hand, such as cars, houses, or bodies: his One-Minute Sculptures(which marked his international debut) consisted of simple instructional drawings that invited viewers to themselves become sculptures by assuming bizarre poses. Wear Me Out showcases Wurm at his most inventive yet, and spans the full scope of his thinking, from outdoor sculptures such as the “fat” and “melting” houses to the artist’s latest work in furniture, drawings and–for the first time–clothing, developed in collaboration with the innovative Belgian fashion designer Walter Van Beirendonck, specifically for the artist’s 2011 exhibition at Gemeentemuseum in The Hague.