The works of Claus Föttinger are to be read as „social sculptures“, which should not be looked at alone, but explicitly put into use, so that they fulfill their function as works of art. His light objects take the form of lamps, tables, benches or bars, neverthless keeping their status as autonomous sculptures with ease. This happens quite in the wake of a concept of „social sculpture“, as Joseph Beuys has coined the term, according to which the artwork emerges from the interaction of artist and recipient. The work exists as a place of encounter and communication and should be used for social interactions. The walls and furniture of his works function as carriers of image programs, which, in conjunction with all the elements of a work, retain their precise iconographic meaning. His groups of works contain pictorial worlds that deal with pop culture, film, politics, the German post-war history or the perceptible changes in public urban space, from which one can read off the current political and social developments. His work is driven by a deep interest in the human condition and an unsatiable curiosity in researching this condition and creating resp. finding the images to express it.

Exhibitions include Museum Ludwig, Köln; Kunsthalle Düsseldorf; Martin Gropius Bau, Berlin; Leopold-Hoesch- Museum, Düren; Museum Morsbroich, Leverkusen; Kunsthalle Hamburg; Kunsthalle Bremerhaven; Deichtorhallen, Hamburg; Kunsthalle Nürnberg; Kunst-und Ausstellungshalle, Bonn; Parkhaus im Malkastenpark, Düsseldorf; Kunsthalle Recklinghausen; Museum Katherinenhof, Kranenburg; Kunsthalle Kiel; Ifa-Institut, Stuttgart; Kunstverein für die Rheinlande und Westfalen, Düsseldorf; Neuer Aachener Kunstverein; Julia Stoschek Collection, Berlin; 21er Haus, Wien; Kunstverein Wiener Art Foundation; George Soros Center of the Art, Kiew; Museo Oscar Niemeyer, Curitiba,; National Gallery of Modern Art NGMA, Mumbai; National Museum of Singapore; National Museum of Nepal ; Kunsthalle Malmö