Obituaries

Robert Indiana, Creator Of 'Love' Sculpture, Dies: Reports

Robert Indiana's "Love" sculpture stands on the corner of Sixth Avenue and West 55th Street.

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — Robert Indiana, the artist who designed the iconic "Love" sculpture in Midtown Manhattan, has died at the age of 89, according to reports.

Indiana died Saturday at his home in Vinalhaven, Maine, from respiratory failure, the artist's lawyer told the New York Times. Indiana is best known for his design of the word "Love" with the first two letters stacked atop the last two and the O slightly tilted.

The "Love" design was originally created in the 1960s as a Christmas card for the Museum of Modern Art, the Times reported. Since its debut, the design has been depicted thousands of times through different mediums such as clothing prints, sculptures and stamps, according to the report. The design was used so often that Indiana would call it the century's "most plagiarized work of art," the Times reported.

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For New Yorkers, the "Love" sculpture on the corner of Sixth Avenue and West 55th Street is likely the design's most notable manifestation. The corner has become a go-to destination for tourists and locals alike.

Read the Times' full report here.

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