Robert Rauschenberg Dead

20th Century American artist Robert Rauschenberg died Monday May 12, 2008 at his home in Florida of heart failure. Rauschenberg had been hospitalized with pneumonia but had been released.

Fast Facts

1. Birthdate: October 22, 1925
2. Birthplace: Port Arthur, Texas
3. Residences: Captiva Island and New York City
4. As a young boy his mother gave him lessons in collage
5. Owners of his art: Lily Tomlin, Lauren Hutton and Sharon Stone
6. Made a $100,000 donation to an AIDS center that was then renamed The Bob Rauschenberg Center for Living

His Many Accomplishments

Rauschenberg was a talented artist who used many mediums such as paint, photography, print and sculpture. His sculptures were unusual as they were formed from various items such as stuffed Bald Eagles and Angora goats to painted quilts and pillows. Rauschenberg was also accomplished as a choreographer, set designer and a performer of the arts.

Quote

"Rauschenberg was a protean genius who showed America that all of life could be open to art. ... Rauschenberg didn't give a fig for consistency, or curating his reputation; his taste was always facile, omnivorous, and hit-or-miss, yet he had a bigness of soul and a richness of temperament that recalled Walt Whitman."—Robert Hughes, Time magazine art critic

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