Louise Nevelson's Sculpture: Drag, Color, Join, Face

A groundbreaking study of Louise Nevelson, a pioneering artist of the 20th century whose innovative techniques address gender, class, and racialized forms of making. Julia Bryan-Wilson offers a critical account of Nevelson's work, exploring how it relates to domesticity, racialized matter, gendered labor, and the environment. The book is organized around a series of key operations in Nevelson's process, and is written from the perspective of a queer feminist scholar.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 352 pages
Publication date: 13 June 2023
Publisher: Yale University Press

A groundbreaking exploration of Louise Nevelson, a pivotal figure in 20th-century art whose innovative techniques intertwine with gendered, classed, and racialized modes of creation, emerges within the pages of this remarkable book. Authored by Julia Bryan-Wilson, this transformative study not only delves into the life and work of a singular artist but also serves as a testament to the author's unwavering dedication and labor of love. Artforum, in its review, hailed the book as a "transforming study of a single artist," highlighting its profound impact on the field of art criticism.

Born in Ukraine and raised as a Jewish immigrant in New York, Louise Nevelson faced numerous challenges in a male-dominated art world. However, her meticulous approach to sculpture, characterized by the assembly of found wood pieces into intricate structures, often adorned in black, has received limited scholarly attention. This book, meticulously organized around a series of key operations central to Nevelson's artistic process, comprises four individually bound volumes that can be explored in any sequence. The form and content of the book mirror Nevelson's own modular sculptures, which she reconfigured with her own hands, creating a sense of interconnectedness and fluidity.

Through a sustained examination of the social and political implications of Nevelson's art, Bryan-Wilson offers a profound exploration of the artist's oeuvre. She delves into how Nevelson's making connects to domesticity, racialized matter, gendered labor, and the environment, shedding light on the complex web of issues that shaped her artistic vision. By approaching Nevelson's sculptures from her own embodied subjectivity as a queer feminist scholar, Bryan-Wilson fosters an expansive art history that places Nevelson's assemblages in dialogue with a wide array of marginalized worldmaking. She highlights the artist's unwavering allegiance to blackness, emphasizing the ways in which her work challenged dominant narratives and advocated for inclusivity and representation.

In conclusion, this book is a testament to the power of art criticism to reshape our understanding of artists and their contributions to the world. Through a rigorous and empathetic analysis, Julia Bryan-Wilson has breathed new life into the legacy of Louise Nevelson, revealing her as a visionary artist whose work continues to resonate with audiences today. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in art history, gender studies, and social justice, as it offers a profound exploration of the complexities and nuances of Nevelson's artistic practice.

Weight: 1310g
Dimension: 182 x 244 x 42 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780300236705