Louise Nevelson
American, born Russia, 1900 - 1988The Magic Column, 1965
Not on view
Etching and aquatint on paper
Dimensions26 × 18 1/2 in. (66 × 47 cm)
Image: 10 1/4 × 7 1/4 in. (26 × 18.4 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Charles F. Libs, 1991.12
Born in Kiev, Russia, Louise Nevelson moved with her family in 1905 to Rockland, Maine, where her father ran a lumber business. Enrolled at the Art Students League in 1929, Nevelson then traveled to Munich, Germany in 1931, to study with Hans Hoffman before returning to the United States to pursue her career in art. She became renowned in the New York art world during the 1950s for her wooden assemblages comprised of elements such as found objects and furniture parts doused in black paint. Some of these assemblages are monumental in scale, often spanning the entire length of a gallery wall.
Nevelson’s graphic art was frequently exhibited in conjunction with her sculpture. In The Magic Column, there is the implication of sculptural form in black column in the central area of the print Surrounding this is a richly textured network of calligraphic-like scribbles and imprinted patterns derived from coarse textiles. The emphasis on monochromatic tonalities is characteristic of Nevelson’s sculpture and graphic art, particularly her preference for black, which conveys her interest in dream states and the realm of the unconscious.
