He broke away from the traditions of European sculpture by showing that sculpture need not be dependent on the human figure. He dispensed with the plinth and expanded the possibilities of sculpture, moving into abstraction. He is one of Britain's most well-known and prolific abstract sculptors.

At the end of 1959 Caro visited the United States. He learnt from Jackson Pollock in particular that art did not have to illustrate a subject, but that the feeling and mood could be implied, and the artist's emotional response to the work reflected. He met the notable art critic Clement Greenberg who criticised Caro's work, telling him `if you want to change your art, change your habits.' Caro decided to try a new material. He visited scrap yards in East London, and purchased steel girders, I-beams...