Explore virtually - La Chiffonnière
Installed in Embarcadero Plaza in 1981, French artist Jean Dubuffet’s Art Brut sculpture La Chiffonnière (“Rag Woman”) stands strikingly tall.
- Title
- La Chiffonnière
- Key dates
Created: 1978
Installed: 1981
- Designer(s)
- Jean Dubuffet
Explore in 3D
Overview
Installed in Embarcadero Plaza in 1981, French artist Jean Dubuffet’s sculpture La Chiffonnière (“Rag Woman”) stands strikingly tall. The sculpture was completed in 1978 and, after a brief display in New York City, it arrived in San Francisco.
Forget what you think a statue should be. La Chiffonnière is a masterpiece of Art Brut.
Think of it as artistic rebellion in steel form. The creator, Jean Dubuffet, rejected stuffy, traditional art and was instead inspired by the wild, unfiltered creativity of outsiders, like the powerful scrawls of children or the intense energy of street graffiti.
He took that raw power and used it to build this towering monument. Instead of honoring a king or a general, La Chiffonnière (“Rag Woman” or “The Rag Picker”) celebrates an overlooked person from the streets. With its jagged black lines and chaotic, cartoon-like shape, the statue isn’t meant to be “pretty.” It’s designed to hit you with a jolt of pure, untamed energy, proving that the most exciting art often comes from breaking all the rules.
Key details
- Style: Art Brut (“Outsider art”)
- Materials: 1/2” stainless steel and marked with black epoxy linear tracings
- Height: 22 feet (6.7 m)
- Weight: Approximately 4,500 lbs (2,000 kg)
- Owned by: BXP (Boston Properties)
- Funded by: San Francisco
- Maintained by: San Francisco, BXP (Boston Properties)