--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I had, over the years, collected things…" description: "\"I had, over the years, collected things, small things, as people do, and I had put them all together and showed them in what became a building in the f..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/claes-oldenburg-10596_building_i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-sm_1687320.png" --- # I had, over the years, collected things, small things, as… ![“I had, over the years, collected things, small things, as people do, and I had put them all together and showed them in what became a building in the form of the Geometric Mouse.” quote by Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/claes-oldenburg-10596_building_i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-sm_1687320.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/claes-oldenburg-10596_building_i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-sm_1687320.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/claes-oldenburg-10596_building_i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-sm_1687320.png) > “I had, over the years, collected things, small things, as people do, and I had put them all together and showed them in what became a building in the form of the Geometric Mouse.” [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Narrates assembling collected objects into a building called the Geometric Mouse, reflecting an artistic process of accumulation and transformation. **In simple terms:** Collected small items were assembled into a geometric building. Key Takeaway Transform everyday collections into artistic statements. Themes art collection transformation Mood playful curious Type conceptual visual When to use this quote - exhibitions - public art - installation - curation Key Concepts material culture spatial design Questions to Reflect On - What everyday objects could become art? - How does accumulation change meaning? A Different Perspective The work may be seen as whimsical, limiting serious interpretation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Building](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/building/) [Collected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collected/) [Collected Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collected-things-1017122/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Geometric](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/geometric/) [Geometric Mouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/geometric-mouse-1017124/) [Mice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mice/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Showed Building](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/showed-building-1017123/) [Small things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-things/) [Together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Years Collected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-collected-678156/) ## Related quotes > [Over a period of years he collected thousands of discples. Many became his students. Many didn't become his students but whenever he was in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/over-a-period-of-years-he-collected-thousands-of-discples-many-became/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I don't really collect anything. I grew up in a family that collected things and then they'd get sick and people die and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-cianfrance/i-don-t-really-collect-anything-i-grew-up-in-a-family-that-collected/) [Derek Cianfrance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-cianfrance/) > [Women have always collected things and saved and recycled them because leftovers yielded nourishment in new forms. The decorative functional objects women made often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miriam-schapiro/women-have-always-collected-things-and-saved-and-recycled-them/) [Miriam Schapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miriam-schapiro/) > [The larger the mass of collected things, the less will be their usefulness. Therefore, one should not only strive to assemble new goods from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gottfried-leibniz/the-larger-the-mass-of-collected-things-the-less-will-be-their/) [Gottfried Leibniz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gottfried-leibniz/) > [I was collecting Barbies. I know... embarrassing. I sold them all on eBay, and traded them for vintage dishes. So I've collected two things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-bauer-van-straten/i-was-collecting-barbies-i-know-embarrassing-i-sold-them-all-on-ebay/) [Kristin Bauer van Straten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-bauer-van-straten/) > [The sun comes into being each day from little pieces of fire that are collected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xenophanes/the-sun-comes-into-being-each-day-from-little-pieces-of-fire-that-are/) [Xenophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xenophanes/) > [Even at a time like this, I should stay cool and collected...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin/even-at-a-time-like-this-i-should-stay-cool-and-collected/) [Caitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin/) > [“In the end, we are collected works. He has read enough to know there are no collections where each story is perfect. Some hits.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/in-the-end-we-are-collected-works-he-has-read-enough-to-know-there/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [I've been trying to write a book since before I was old enough to vote, and I've collected many rejection slips from publishers and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-moehringer/i-ve-been-trying-to-write-a-book-since-before-i-was-old-enough-to/) [J. R. Moehringer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-moehringer/) > [During the session of the Supreme Court, in the village of -, about three weeks ago, when a number of people were collected in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustus-baldwin-longstreet/during-the-session-of-the-supreme-court-in-the-village-of-about-three/) [Augustus Baldwin Longstreet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustus-baldwin-longstreet/) > [Diplomacy has always involved dinners with ruling elites, backroom deals and clandestine meetings. Now, in the digital age, the reports of all those parties…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-brooke/diplomacy-has-always-involved-dinners-with-ruling-elites-backroom/) [Heather Brooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-brooke/) > [My mother was a Bloomsbury figure: a great friend of TS Eliot, Duncan Grant, Vanessa Bell. My grandmother, Mary Hutchinson, gave her life to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-rothschild/my-mother-was-a-bloomsbury-figure-a-great-friend-of-ts-eliot-duncan/) [Jacob Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-rothschild/) > [From the time I was 5 years old, I collected comic books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cornette/from-the-time-i-was-5-years-old-i-collected-comic-books/) [Jim Cornette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cornette/) > [I feel like, if the guys can look at me in the huddle and see a calm and collected face, that they're going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-flynn/i-feel-like-if-the-guys-can-look-at-me-in-the-huddle-and-see-a-calm/) [Matt Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-flynn/) > [Teaching does allow me to keep one foot in the youthful waters I tend to occupy in my novels, so I'm thankful for that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alafair-burke/teaching-does-allow-me-to-keep-one-foot-in-the-youthful-waters-i-tend/) [Alafair Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alafair-burke/) ## More by Claes Oldenburg > [I had no idea what art was. There was one art class in high school, but it didn't make a big impression on me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-had-no-idea-what-art-was-there-was-one-art-class-in-high-school-but/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [I am an immigrant in a sense. What happened was that my father was stationed in New York when my mother became pregnant, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-am-an-immigrant-in-a-sense-what-happened-was-that-my-father-was/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [My mother warned me to avoid things colored red.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/my-mother-warned-me-to-avoid-things-colored-red/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [I started to draw buildings. I called them Proposed Colossal Monuments - they weren't for real, not for actual building. It was more a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-started-to-draw-buildings-i-called-them-proposed-colossal-monuments/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [Food is like clay; you can sculpt with it. Also it has an odor, and you can eat it. I don't eat a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/food-is-like-clay-you-can-sculpt-with-it-also-it-has-an-odor-and-you/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [I am for an art that tells you the time of day, or where such and such a street is. I am for an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-am-for-an-art-that-tells-you-the-time-of-day-or-where-such-and-such/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [I knew I wasn't that good a writer, and all I could remember was that I could draw. I'm better at drawing than I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-knew-i-wasn-t-that-good-a-writer-and-all-i-could-remember-was-that/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [“I am for an art that imitates the human, that is comic, if necessary, or violent, or whatever is necessary. I am for an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-am-for-an-art-that-imitates-the-human-that-is-comic-if-necessary-or/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [The art world was very small and the people got together at parties. There was less commercialism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/the-art-world-was-very-small-and-the-people-got-together-at-parties/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [A life cycle can be imposed on an object. An object can be very energetic and active, and then it has a dying phase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/a-life-cycle-can-be-imposed-on-an-object-an-object-can-be-very/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [I don't do abstract art because I don't find it as interesting as I do subjects and depictions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-don-t-do-abstract-art-because-i-don-t-find-it-as-interesting-as-i/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [Actually, New York is great for playing around. I made a lot of studies for New York-a big vacuum cleaner lying on the Battery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/actually-new-york-is-great-for-playing-around-i-made-a-lot-of-studies/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [I'm always careful to say that I changed everything I found.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-m-always-careful-to-say-that-i-changed-everything-i-found/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [If you really want to be an artist, you search yourself, and you find a lot of it comes from earlier times. I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/if-you-really-want-to-be-an-artist-you-search-yourself-and-you-find-a/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) > [ My work doesn't have the same rules as, say, Andy \[Warhol\]'s work. But it's gathered together for the simple reason that we all worked… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/my-work-doesn-t-have-the-same-rules-as-say-andy-warhol-s-work-but-it/) [Claes Oldenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) [Explore all 64 Claes Oldenburg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/) ## More Building quotes > [You, of Canada, are building a magnificent record of achievement. My country rejoices in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/you-of-canada-are-building-a-magnificent-record-of-achievement-my/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [One of the things the United States does well is building coalitions. What the U.S. knows is that if you don't have a coalition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/one-of-the-things-the-united-states-does-well-is-building-coalitions/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [Surely, if Mother Nature had been consulted, she would never have consented to building a city in New Orleans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-zuckerman/surely-if-mother-nature-had-been-consulted-she-would-never-have/) [Mortimer Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-zuckerman/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I've done so many other projects where you're in a room with a reader and you're acting your lines out: 'We have to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/i-ve-done-so-many-other-projects-where-you-re-in-a-room-with-a-reader/) [Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/) > [Absolutely, you can improve and become better at toughness. It's a talent, but it can be acquired, too. I think of it like building…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-harbaugh/absolutely-you-can-improve-and-become-better-at-toughness-it-s-a/) [Jim Harbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-harbaugh/) > [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I'd like to play Ian Paisley, actually. I'd need building up, though he's very frail now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liam-neeson/i-d-like-to-play-ian-paisley-actually-i-d-need-building-up-though-he/) [Liam Neeson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liam-neeson/) > [Death is but an aspect of life, and the destruction of one material form is but a prelude to building up of another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/death-is-but-an-aspect-of-life-and-the-destruction-of-one-material/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Some architects have a preconceived notion of what a building should be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-w-fentress/some-architects-have-a-preconceived-notion-of-what-a-building-should/) [Curtis W. Fentress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-w-fentress/) > [As for the forces, electromagnetism and gravity we experience in everyday life. But the weak and strong forces are beyond our ordinary experience. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-witten/as-for-the-forces-electromagnetism-and-gravity-we-experience-in/) [Edward Witten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-witten/) > [I'm 30. I'm about to hit my prime now. I need to act and keep building.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dillian-whyte/i-m-30-i-m-about-to-hit-my-prime-now-i-need-to-act-and-keep-building/) [Dillian Whyte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dillian-whyte/) > [The essential functions of the mind consist in understanding and in inventing, in other words, in building up structures by structuring reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/the-essential-functions-of-the-mind-consist-in-understanding-and-in/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [Practically every time I speak up at a school conference, a political event, or my apartment building association's annual meeting, I'm met with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-druckerman/practically-every-time-i-speak-up-at-a-school-conference-a-political/) [Pamela Druckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-druckerman/) [Browse all 5,974 Building quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/building/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I had, over the years, collected things, small things, as people do, and I had put them all together and showed them in what became a building in the form of the Geometric Mouse.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Claes Oldenburg" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-small-things-as-people-do-and-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Building" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-small-things-as-people-do-and-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/claes-oldenburg-10596_building_i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-sm_1687320.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/claes-oldenburg-10596_building_i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-sm_1687320.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/claes-oldenburg-10596_building_i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-sm_1687320.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I had, over the years, collected things, small things, as people do, and I had put them all together and…” — Claes Oldenburg", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Claes Oldenburg", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claes-oldenburg/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I had, over the years, collected...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-small-things-as-people-do-and-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claes-oldenburg/i-had-over-the-years-collected-things-small-things-as-people-do-and-i/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```