American sculptor Richard Serra has died

Washington – At the age of 85, American sculptor Richard Serra has died, who gained fame especially for his giant rusting constructions. This was reported by The New York Times, citing the sculptor's legal representative.

According to the American newspaper, Serra died on Tuesday at his home in New York State from pneumonia.

Serra exhibited in significant American and world galleries. His works often stood out for their gigantic dimensions rather than detailed intricacy. Artistically, he was considered a minimalist, wrote the Reuters agency. He mainly created from industrial materials, with steel plates being the most typical material for him, which he allowed to rust outdoors.

Serra was born in San Francisco in 1938 to a Spanish father and a Russian mother. He often visited shipyards in his childhood, where his father worked. Later, he himself worked in a steel mill, which influenced his later work.

He entered public consciousness mainly due to the controversial 36-meter-long and 3.6-meter-high installation Tilted Arc, which was placed in New York's Federal Plaza in 1981. Supporters claimed the work transformed public space and shifted the concept of sculpture, while critics considered it ugly. After a tumultuous public debate, the sculpture was removed in 1989.

In 2005, eight significant works by Serra were exhibited at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. Spanish sculptor and curator of the exhibition Carmen Jiménez then stated, according to the AP agency, that he is "undoubtedly the most significant living sculptor."