Louise Nevelson, born Leah Berliawsky on September 23, 1899, in the Russian Empire's Poltava Governorate (now Ukraine), was a visionary American sculptor renowned for her monumental, monochromatic wooden wall pieces and outdoor sculptures. Her family emigrated to the United States in the early 20th century, settling in Rockland, Maine, in 1905, where her father operated a lumberyard. This environment played a significant role in her artistic development, as she grew up playing with scraps from the lumberyard and declared her intention to become a professional sculptor by the age of ten. In 1920, Nevelson married Charles Nevelson, a wealthy ship owner, and moved to New York. The couple had a son two years later, but the marriage was not to last; they separated in the early 1930s and divorced in 1941. During this time, Nevelson's artistic journey was marked by her studies with prominent figures such as Kenneth Hayes Miller at the Art Students League of New York, abstract painter Hans Hofmann in Munich, and as an assistant to Diego Rivera on a mural project. She also worked as an art teacher hired by the Works Progress Administration, which supported many artists during the 1930s. Nevelson's early work was influenced by pre-Columbian art, which she encountered during her travels to Guatemala and Mexico. Her first solo exhibition took place at the Nierendorf Gallery in New York in 1941, featuring terra cotta and wood sculptures based on Mayan and other primitive imagery. However, it wasn't until the mid-1950s that Nevelson's far-ranging interests coalesced into the dramatically conceived constructions for which she became world-renowned. By the late 1950s, Nevelson began creating her signature monochromatic, spray-painted wooden assemblages. She constructed abstract compositions by arranging scavenged bits of discarded wood in boxes, stacking them to form sculptural walls and environments, and unifying them by painting them a single color. Her work from this period, such as "Sky Cathedral" (1958), caused a sensation and garnered major recognition, particularly her room-size, all-white "Dawn’s Wedding Feast" at the "Sixteen Americans" group show at The Museum of Modern Art in 1959–60. Nevelson's reputation soared in the 1960s, a decade during which she represented the United States at the prestigious Venice Biennale and was honored with a retrospective exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art. She received six honorary doctorates and continued to exhibit her work regularly in Europe and the United States. Her sculptures, often created out of wood, appear puzzle-like, with multiple intricately cut pieces placed into wall sculptures or independently standing pieces, often 3-D, and are typically painted in monochromatic black or white. Nevelson's work transcended the mere assembly of objects; it was about myth and mystery. She stated that she identified with ideas "more than with nature." Although she was fascinated with the living quality of wood, in the 1960s she added plastics and formica to her repertoire of media and in the 1970s began to create monumentally scaled pieces in aluminum and steel. An iconic pioneering artist, Nevelson was celebrated in her lifetime with numerous recognitions, including the National Medal of the Arts and the Skowhegan Medal for Sculpture. She was also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and received commissions for public art, such as the "Louise Nevelson Plaza" in Lower Manhattan and St. Peter's Church in Midtown Manhattan. Nevelson's influence extended beyond her sculptures. She was known for her distinctive personal style, often wearing ethnic clothing with jewelry, her head wrapped in scarves and riding hats, and eyes highlighted with layers of velvety black mink eyelashes. This unique fashion sense made her a captivating subject for photographers and landed her on Eleanor Lambert's "Best Dressed International Women" fashion list in 1977. Louise Nevelson passed away on April 17, 1988, in New York City at the age of 88. Her legacy continues to be celebrated, with her works held in the collections of major institutions such as the Tate Gallery in London, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. Nevelson remains one of the most important figures in 20th-century American sculpture, her work a testament to the power of creativity and the enduring impact of an artist who defied convention to forge a unique and lasting artistic language.

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