H. C. Westermann

H. C. Westermann
Born	December 11, 1922(1922-12-11)
Died	November 3, 1981(1981-11-03) (aged 58)
Nationality	American
Field	Printmaking, Sculpture
Training	School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Influenced	Ed Ruscha, Jeff Koons, Bruce Nauman, Ken Price

They Couldn't Put “Humpty Dumpty” Back Together Again, ebony, vermillion wood and walnut sculpture by H. C. Westermann, 1980, Honolulu Academy of Arts

H. C. Westermann (Horace Clifford "Cliff" Westermann) (11 December 1922 (Los Angeles, California) – 3 November 1981 (Danbury, Connecticut)) was an American printmaker and sculptor whose art constituted a scathing commentary on militarism and materialism. His sculptures frequently incorporated traditional carpentry and marquetry techniques.

Westermann worked in logging camps as a rail worker in the Pacific Northwest. During World War II he served as a gunner in the U.S. Marine Corps on the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, witnessing numerous kamikaze attacks and the sinking of several ships. He toured the Far East as an acrobat with the United Service Organization, and enrolled in The School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 1947.

In 1950, Westermann re-enlisted in the Marines for service in the Korean War. After his discharge, he returned to The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and completed his studies in fine art. The psychological effects of his wartime experiences were an underlying theme in his work.

In 1967, he was one of the celebrities featured on the cover of the Beatles' album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

He was given a retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art in 1978.

Works

• Untitled (in the manner of Salvador Dalí) - about 1948
• Theatrical Worlds Spirit after Bernardino Jacobi - about 1949
• A Soldier’s Dream - 1955
• Dismasted Ship - 1956
• Ensor’s Mother - 1956
• Untitled (“Unusual Physician”) - 1957
• He Whore-1957
• Memorial to the Idea of Man If He Was an Idea - 1958
• Mad House - 1958
• Burning House, 1958
• Battle of Little Big Horn - 1959
• Angry Young Machine - 1959
• Destructive Machine from Under the Sea - 1959
• Disasters in the Sky #2 - 1962
• Walnut Box - 1964
• Antimobile, 1965
• Korean KAI ASH, 1965
• Death Ship of No Port - 1967
• Green Planet (Green Planet π) - 1967
• Woman from Indianapolis (Columbia, Missouri) - 1967
• See America First - a series, 1968
• The Connecticut Ballroom - 1975-76
• They Couldn't Put “Humpty Dumpty” Back Together Again - 1980 (Honolulu Academy of Arts)
• Jack of Diamonds - 1981

See also

	World War II portal
	United States Marine Corps portal
	Biography portal

References

• http://www.mcachicago.org/westermanncurriculum/frames/frm_home.html
• http://www.tfaoi.com/aa/3aa/3aa333.htm
• NYT obituary

See also: Westermann

• Haskell, Barbara. H.C. Westermann. New York: Whitney Museum of American Art, 1978.

Persondata
Name	Westermann, H. C.
Alternative names
Short description	United States Marine
Date of birth	December 11, 1922
Place of birth	Los Angeles, California
Date of death	November 3, 1981
Place of death	Danbury, Connecticut