Robert Indiana

Born Robert Clark (later naming himself after his home state), Indiana is one of the leading figures in American Pop Art of the 60s and 70s. Most widely known for his iconic 'LOVE' logo, Indiana studied art in Chicago, Maine and even at Edinburgh College of Art in the 1950s, before settling in New York to begin his work with a distinctive 'hard edge' style, often based on typography. Like the contemporary Street/Urban Art of the 21st century Indiana has clearly influenced, his work focuses on short bold images and statements - EAT, DIE, HUG, numbers or of course - 'LOVE'. In 1964 he was commissioned to create an 'EAT' sign for the New York State Pavilion at the New York World's Fair, however the art was removed as the public refused to believe it wasn't advertising a restaurant. 

Indiana's iconic 'Love' logo was first created as a Christmas card for the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in 1965, it later became a stamp for the USA in 1973 and has featured in many forms in pop culture, the media, in sculpture and the art world. Indiana's other major works include a series made after the 9/11 attacks, a sculpture in Taiwan's trade centre and the basketball court used by the Milwaukee Bucks. He also starred in an Andy Warhol film in 1964 titled 'Eat', which was a 45 minutes film of Indiana eating a mushroom.

His work is in most major collections across the USA and one of his LOVE sculptures sold for $4.1 million in 2011.