Louise Nevelson was one of the leading American female sculptors of the 20th century, and she did it on her own terms. She was a pioneer of installation art and created large-scale monochromatic sculptures that are today known for their provocative, compartmentalized forms. While her assemblages involved a range of materials, she is best known for her wooden sculptures. Working in a single color was her signature, and all-encompassing color demanded an all-encompassing focus for this artist — she even kept separate studios for work in black, white and gold.
Nevelson was born in what is now Ukraine in 1899 and emigrated to the United States with her family in 1905. She moved to New York City as a young woman in 1920 to study at the Art Students League. In the 1930s, Nevelson traveled around Europe, came into contact with the works of Picasso, studied with Hans Hofmann and assisted Diego Rivera in New York City.
Nevelson had her first solo show in 1941 at the Nierendorf Gallery in New York. In the late 1940s, she studied with Stanley William Hayter and worked as a ceramicist in the workshop of revered furniture designer Vladimir Kagan, who let her take scraps from the factory to use in her sculptures. (As a child, Nevelson had also worked with discarded wood from her father's lumber yard.)
By the early 1950s, Nevelson had traveled to Guatemala and Mexico. She was inspired by pre-Columbian art and the totemic works of ancient cultures. Nevelson began creating the first of her iconic wood sculptures and later participated in the legendary “Sixteen Americans” exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art. Her work was acquired by prominent institutions in the years that followed.
Nevelson made reliefs in shadow boxes and was for a time affiliated with New York City’s Sidney Janis Gallery as its first female Abstract Expressionist artist (her work was abstract but she also drew on the Cubist and Constructivist movements). In the early 1960s, Nevelson showed her art in Chicago, Manhattan, Paris and West Germany. It was around this time that she exhibited at Pace Gallery in Boston and New York. The gallery represented her for the duration of her career.
Nevelson died in 1988, but her legacy is immense. Her work is held in virtually every major American art museum, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the National Gallery of Art. Her permanent large-scale public sculptures are installed all over the country, including in Louise Nevelson Plaza in New York City's Financial District.
On 1stDibs, find original Louise Nevelson sculptures, prints and drawings.
$90,000
Signed and dated 76 "Untitled" wood and paper collage by artist Louise Nevelson
By Louise Nevelson
Located in Boca Raton, FL
"Untitled" wood and paper collage by artist Louise Nevelson. Hand-signed and dated Louise Nevelson -76. Framed under glass.
Wood, Paper
$26,463
Untitled, Collage abstract expressionistic wooden collage, monochrome black
By Louise Nevelson
Located in Zug, CH
Nevelson’s compositions explore the relational possibilities of sculpture and space, summing up the objectification of the external world into a personal landscape. Although her prac...
Wood
Untitled
By Louise Nevelson
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Caviar20 is excited to be offering this striking collage by the inimitable Louise Nevelson, who is regarded as one of the most original, influential, and successful American sculptors of the 20th century. Nevelson's enduring appeal lies in her distinct visual language, which is apparent in all of her works, regardless of medium. While her iconic monochromatic wood assemblages are instantly recognizable, she continuously experimented with diverse materials, including resin, steel, and bronze, as well as numerous printmaking techniques. Collage was an important part of Nevelson's practice, defining her signature aesthetic. Much like her approach to printmaking, her collages possess a sculptural ethos that transcends the two-dimensional surface, imbuing the composition with a remarkable sense of volume, texture, and depth. One could argue that Nevelson's sculpture was informed by collage in that she took assorted existing forms combining them in order to create an entirely new and distinct arrangement. This untitled collage is an exceptional example of the artist's mastery of the medium. Featuring an assemblage of wood veneer, mirror, and metal, this work reflects Nevelson's meticulous sense of form and rhythm. Subtle details, such as the alternating direction of the wood veneer grain further heighten the visual complexity of the otherwise minimal composition. The inclusion of wood veneer marks a notable shift for Nevelson, who was previously loyal to a strict monochromatic palette of black or white. It wasn’t until the 1970s with her experimentation in collage that she expanded her palette. Nevelson also created jewellery and this collage acknowledges her activity in that realm. Created at the age of 83 during the final chapter of her career, this piece powerfully captures Nevelson's enduring spirit and dedication to artistic innovation. Today Nevelson's work can be found in every major public collection across North America and beyond. Questions about this piece? Contact us. Visit our Toronto gallery on Thursdays or by appointment. "Untitled" USA, 1983 Mixed media collage Metal, mirror, wood, and wood veneer on grey mat board mounted on 0.25" Luan plywood Signed and dated by artist, bottom right Nevelson Estate no. LN 40830 19.5"H 15.75"W (work) 31"H 21"W (framed) Very good condition Literature: Stein, Judith. Louise Nevelson Collages...
Metal
Jumbo (Working Proof)
By Louise Nevelson
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Collage was an important part of Louise Nevelson's practice. The process mirrored her approach to sculpture; taking disparate elements and assembling or uniting them into a complex w...
Screen
$1,300
H 11.82 in W 7.09 in D 7.09 in
"Smile 2.0" Abstract Sculpture, Textile & Wood, Handmade, 30x18 cm
Located in Zofingen, AG
This series of sculptures is called Emotional States. It was created in 2023 in Kyiv (Ukraine). I lived and worked all year in my hometown in the middle of a Big war. I experienced a...
Textile, Wood, Acrylic
$27,000
H 60 in W 60 in D 2 in
"Orange Colors" by Rehfeld - Large Abstract Geometric in Orange and Yellow
By Steven H. Rehfeld
Located in Carmel, CA
Steven H. Rehfeld (American, born 1954) "Orange Colors" 2018 Oil paint, Paper, Glue, Canvas, Stretcher bars The artist signed the back of the painting. In "Orange Colors," Rehfeld o...
Canvas, Oil, Paper, Glue, Stretcher Bars
Three Moons
By Marina Stern
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This work is part of our exhibition Marina Stern Luminary, the first retrospective of the artist since 2007. Previously exhibited: Marina Stern Paintings, Eleanor Rigelhaupt Gallery...
Paper, Acrylic, Pencil
$1,100
H 12.5 in W 10 in D 1 in
Acid etched Metallic Foil Glass Wall Sculpture Artwork Framed ed. 25 Signed
By Suzan Etkin
Located in Surfside, FL
With the exception of the dark metallic one they are transparent and opaque glass. I have shot the photos on a dark background so you can better see the images. they are signed in in...
Glass, Wood
$2,000
H 28 in W 28 in D 0.5 in
Gemini, 1960s Op Art geometric silkscreen, mixed media paper, Signed AP, Framed
By Anne Youkeles
Located in New York, NY
Anne Youkeles Gemini, ca. 1969 Three-dimensional mixed media silkscreen on folded sheets of thin card Hand-signed by artist in pencil, titled and annotated Artist's Proof I from the ...
Paper, Mixed Media, Laid Paper, Screen
$2,800
H 23 in W 23 in
Persian Garden, Op Art 3D Color Silkscreen w/ Arches paper backing Signed/N '70s
By Anne Youkeles
Located in New York, NY
Anne Youkeles Persian Garden, ca. 1970 3D Color Silkscreen w/ Arches paper backing Hand-signed by artist in pencil, titled and numbered 37/100 on backing sheet of Arches paper. 23 x ...
Screen, Laid Paper
$275
H 3 in W 1.38 in D 0.95 in
Liz Sweibel, Untitled (Scrapings #2), 2016, Wood, Paint, Found Objects
By Liz Sweibel
Located in Darien, CT
The freestanding sculptures in this portfolio are made from the “sticks”: a pile of found wood that Sweibel has been pulling from to make new works since about 2002. The pile consisted of more than a dozen four- to seven-foot lengths of hardwood, each an uneven inch in depth and width. The sticks were warped, with worn yellow paint on one side and raw wood on the other three. Over the years she has painted the raw sides of the sticks, cut the wood into shorter lengths, and sliced paint off – and kept the residue from these actions. Sweibel has also made sculptures ranging from full-length sticks to tiny stick splinters. She built these sculptures using sliced-off paint. Timeworn materials and objects have an intelligence that the artist looks for and listens to. Shaping and reshaping material to find new form and elicit new insights in the material itself is the territory she is mining. The limitations of the process are its strengths. Her work is concerned with fragility, precariousness, adaptability, and strength. It is a visual response to powerful yet unseen forces - like wind and thoughts - that threaten, propel, ruin, and protect. Liz Sweibel is a multidisciplinary artist working in drawing, sculpture, installation, and digital photography and video. Her spare, personal language of abstraction transforms ordinary materials into statements about connectedness and responsibility: every action has an impact, the effects persist in space and over time, and we are accountable. By drawing attention to simple, ordinary “stuff of life” and referencing both shared and personal history, Sweibel’s work explores and reflects back fundamental experiences in response to our world and relationships. Her intention is to reinvigorate viewers’ awareness of the everyday – in its raw beauty and precariousness – in hopes that they might bring heightened senses of sight and care to their daily lives. Sweibel has participated in solo, two-person, and group exhibits in New York, Massachusetts, Maine, Connecticut, Michigan, and Tennessee since 1998. In 2016, Sweibel’s work was in the group shows Lightly Structured at Sculpture Space NYC, Precarious Constructs at the Venus Knitting Art...
Wood, Paint, Found Objects
$2,950
H 24.5 in W 17.5 in D 1 in
“Chinoi Plaque #2” Philip & Kelvin LaVerne Etched Bronze & Pewter Wall Plaque
Located in Yardley, PA
In “Chinoi #2,” Philip and Kelvin LaVerne return to their favorite theme of Chinoiserie reverie, rendering a lyrical vignette from acid etched bronze and pewter. A lone boy sits with...
Bronze, Metal
$2,950
H 24.5 in W 17.5 in D 1 in
“Chinoi Plaque #1” Philip & Kelvin LaVerne Etched Bronze & Pewter Wall Plaque
Located in Yardley, PA
In “Chinoi #1,” Philip and Kelvin LaVerne return to their favorite theme of Chinoiserie reverie, rendering a lyrical vignette from acid etched bronze and pewter. A lone figure ascend...
Metal, Bronze
$22,000
H 30.5 in W 28 in D 14 in
Karel Appel Colorful Expressionist Hand Painted Wood Cobra Sculpture Pop Art
By Karel Appel
Located in Surfside, FL
This is an original wooden sculpture with hand painting on both sides. it does not appear to be signed or numbered and does not currently have any label. I believe this might be the ...
Wood, Paint
Night Doors II
By Marina Stern
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This work is part of our exhibition Marina Stern Luminary, the first retrospective of the artist since 2007. Previously exhibited: Marina Stern Paintings, Eleanor Rigelhaupt Gallery...
Paper, Acrylic, Pencil
$1,200
H 23 in W 29 in
Cube, Geometric Abstract Acrylic and Collage Work on Paper by Max Hein
By Max Hein
Located in Long Island City, NY
Artist: Max Hein Title: Cube Year: 1974 Medium: Acrylic with Collage on Paper, signed and dated in pencil Size: 23 x 29 in. (58.42 x 73.66 cm)
Mixed Media, Screen
Sold
H 30.5 in W 32 in D 1.5 in
Mid-Century Etching entitled "One Ancient Figure" Edition Artist's Proof signed
By Louise Nevelson
Located in New York, NY
This Mid-Century Modernist etching, titled "One Ancient Figure", is an artist's proof, created and signed by the renowned American sculptor and printmaker Louise Nevelson circa 1953....
Etching
Sold
H 14.57 in W 9.45 in D 1.38 in
Louise Nevelson - Winter Chord - Hand-Signed Black Painted Wood Sculpture, 1974
By Louise Nevelson
Located in Varese, IT
Louise Nevelson ( 1899 - 1988 ) - Winter Chord - hand-signed black painted wood sculpture, 1974 Additional information: Material: Black p...
Wood
Sold
H 35 in W 24.25 in D 1.5 in
Framed Louise Nevelson 'Dawn Prescence' - A White Molded Paper Intaglio
By Louise Nevelson
Located in New York, NY
This beautiful framed paper Intaglio, entiteld "Dawn Presence" was realized by the legendary modern artist Louise Nevelson in the United States circa 1975. It features abstracted, hi...
Archival Paper
Lullaby for Jumbo
By Louise Nevelson
Located in Toronto, Ontario
Collage was an important part of Louise Nevelson's practice. The process mirrored her approach in sculpture; taking disparate elements and assembling or uniting them into a complex whole. Similar to her American contemporaries, Nevelson delved into printmaking. She worked with the leading printing studios in America adopting new techniques while expanding her aesthetic and oeuvre considerably. This collage was the final maquette that would be screenprinted becoming "Lullaby for Jumbo" (from "Façade: In Homage to Edith Sitwell") Nevelson worked with Chiron Press in New York, which had opened in 1962 and was a just a stone's through from her 11th Street home studio. The works in this series were dedicated to the British poet Edith Sitwell who passed away in 1964. Sitwell had published a book of abstract poems titled Façade, the poems' rhythms were counterparts to music set by the famed English composer, William...
Screen
Untitled
By Louise Nevelson
Located in Palm Desert, CA
An artwork by Louise Nevelson. "Untitled" is a found-object, assemblage, abstract sculpture, painted wood, violin key and clothespin in a black palette by Post War artist Louise Nevelson. Louise Nevelson was an early conceptual artist who worked in a variety of media before engrossing herself with wood sculpture. Her sculptures are made of intricately cut and built wood pieces that create puzzle-like compositions. Often, these sculptures were painted black to incorporate every color – for Nevelson, black was not the absence of color, but the totality of it. Later in her career, she began to incorporate white and gold into her repetoire, however the sculptures remained monochromatic. Nevelson was a prolific artist, who was accorded the highest critical acclaim yet achieved by an American woman artist. Her artwork is held in a number of exceptional private and public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Cleveland Art Museum, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Provenance: Gertrude Stein Gallery, New York The Arthur and Anita Kahn...
Wood, Mixed Media
Untitled Collage
By Louise Nevelson
Located in Fairlawn, OH
Part of Louise Nevelson; "I think most artists create out of despair." Assemblage, Collage, Jewelry, Prints, Photographs and Sculpture. July '18 in Cleveland, OH at 78th Street Stu...
Mixed Media
"Double Imagery"
By Louise Nevelson
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Signed & Dated 1967 LR Louise Nevelson was born in Kiev, Russia. Her family moved to the United States in 1905, and in 1920 she moved to New York City and began studying at the Art Students League in 1929. Using old pieces of wood, found objects, she constructed huge walls, enclosed box arrangements of complex and rhythmic abstract shapes. Examples of Nevelson's work are in 50 museums including the Whitney, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Her first one-woman show was at the Karl Nierendorf Gallery in NYC in 1941. She had solo exhibitions at the Norlyst and Nierendorf Galleries from 1943 to 1944. In later years she studied printmaking and experimented with marble and terra-cotta. Her fame came about from her show "Ancient Games...
Lithograph