Which monumental sculpture by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen is a giant typewriter eraser installed in Washington, D.C.?

Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen created Typewriter Eraser, Scale X, the giant eraser sculpture installed in Washington, D.C.

The work enlarges an ordinary office object into a monumental form. It was made in 1998 from stainless steel and fiberglass and stands in the Sculpture Garden of the National Gallery of Art. The title refers to the eraser’s enlarged scale and to the typewriter-era object that inspired it.

Oldenburg became famous for transforming everyday consumer objects into oversized sculptures. Van Bruggen collaborated with him on many major public works, bringing architectural scale and bright, carefully controlled surfaces to their designs.

Typewriter Eraser, Scale X is sometimes confused with Oldenburg’s earlier Typewriter Eraser, Scale X from 1968, which is a different work. The Washington sculpture is the later monumental version and uses a more durable construction for outdoor display.