Australian Innovator

There are few in the art world who can truly be regarded as innovators. Picasso springs to mind, as do Miro, Pollock and Warhol. The number of Australian artists who wear the tag are even fewer, but one who stands out in Australian art as a true innovator is Robert Klippel, the man now regarded as this country's premier sculptor.

Born in 1920, Klippel came to art by a circuitous route. His family was not artistic, but as a young boy, he had an interest in building model ships. The exacting detail and keen eye required in model-building undoubtedly honed his skills. He was not however inclined to an artistic career early on, and in fact joined the Navy. He studied sculpting at East Sydney Technical College and this training, combined with his childhood hobby, saw him engaged by the Navy during World War II making models of ships and aircraft.

Wooden prototype for Adelaide Plaza bronze, No. 714 (1988)
© Estate of Robert Klippel

After the war however, Klippel's interest in the creative was stoked, and he went to London to study at the Slade School of Art. While in London, he met other expatriate Australians including the surrealist painter James Gleeson. The two collaborated on several works including Madame Sophie Sesostoris (a pre-raphaelite satire) (1947/48), combining Klippel's sculpture with Gleeson's painting. For a time, Klippel wholeheartedly embraced the surrealist ethic, exhibiting at a major surrealist show and meeting Andre Breton.

By the 1950s however Klippel had grown apart from the surrealists and moved to New York. There he was invigorated by the burgeoning art scene, and particularly the rise of abstract expressionism. As with his flirtation with the surrealists, Klippel threw himself into the new aesthetic with vigour. His earlier interest in scientific pursuits melded with his artistic concerns, and he began moving away from "traditional" sculpture and into what might be termed collage sculpture.

He started joining found objects together to create sculpture, in much the same was as a collagist creates pictures. He began incorporating machine parts, pieces of wood and industrial piping into his works. The result was his now-famous "junk" assemblages.

After a stint teaching in Minneapolis, Klippel returned to Australia in 1963, setting up a studio in Birchgrove. He had by that time become well-known internationally, even though he was still not widely recognised "at home". In 1964, art critic Robert Hughes dubbed Klippel was "one of the few Australian sculptors worthy of international attention", a statement which cemented his reputation.

Over the following years, Klippel worked virtually continuously in Sydney. He kept making his very personal art. In addition to his "junk" assemblages, he utilised drawing, collage and photography in this work. But he never completely abandoned "traditional" sculpture altogether, and worked on several high profile public art commissions around the country.

Never one to be too direct in his work, Klippel firmly believed in the idea that art "doesn't have to say something". So many of his works are not identified by a name, but simply by a number, leaving the viewer to interpret what the artist is (or, for that matter, isn't) saying with the piece.

Robert Klippel died in Sydney in 2001, at the age of 80.

From August 9 to October 13, 2002, the Art Gallery of New South Wales will present a major retrospective of Klippel's work, charting his development as an artist from the 1940s to the 1990s. To accompany the exhibition, the AGNSW will also be publishing a comprehensive monograph and a CD ROM catalogue raisonné - the first of its kind produced on an Australian artist - providing detailed information on more than 1,200 of Klippel's sculptures. Entry to the exhibition is free.

David Edwards