Louise Nevelson "Dawn's Wedding Chapel II", left | Laura Bird Miller's sample Nevelson project for ages 6-up, right.

Most artists think out of the box; Louise Nevelson thinks out of the box within the box.    Her intriguing maze of "boxes" is filled with elements of art & principles of design including texture, form, balance, rhythm, unity. Louise Nevelson's piece on the left above is called "Dawn's Wedding Chapel II."   

Why do you think she named it that?

Ms. Nevelson used a single color to unify the piece as well as repeating certain forms.

Why do you think she used only one color, particularly the color white/off-white? 

When we get married, we say the two become one, and we are unified.  By using one color, Louise Nevelson unifies her piece.

The base of the sculpture is simple and appropriately sized.  Does the base add, detract, or is it neutral in it's form and function? 

When you look at how the "boxes" are balanced,  it feels good, doesn't it, like you're not worried anything will topple over.  It has a feel of formality in its balance called formal balance.  Weddings are often very formal.  

Do you think if you divided this sculpture down the middle each side would be exactly equal?  Might each side represent the man and the woman?  

Look carefully at the forms (notice I say form and not shape; shape is 2-D, like circle, square and form is 3-D like sphere, cube.) 

Do you think they are symbolic in any way; if so how?

Do you like this sculpture?  Do you like it more now that you dug deeper? 

Would you like to make one like the sample to the right above?

To see instructions on how to make one like the sample above (right) or below, follow the link to my March 18, 2013 post for Fireflies: http://fireflies-soc.blogspot.com/2013/03/an-out-of-box-masterpiece-and-response.html

Who is Louise Nevelson?   

Our artist was born on September 23, 1899, in Pereyaslav near Kiev, Russia.  When she was 6 years old, her family moved to the United States where her dad established a lumber business, building and selling houses.  She studied voice, drama, and art in college.  She worked as an extra in films in Berlin and Vienna.  She traveled in Europe and eventually became an assistant to Diego Rivera, helping with his famous mural for The New Workers’ School, New York.  She studied sculpture as well and much of her work is done in wood like the one above.  Being that her father worked with wood, isn't it interesting that her sculptures were often in wood?

Credits:  Louise Nevelson's, Dawn’s Wedding Chapel II, 1959. Painted wood, 115 7/8 × 83 1/2 × 10 1/2 in. (294.3 × 212.1 × 26.7 cm) with base. Whitney Museum of American Art, New York; purchase with funds from the Howard and Jean Lipman Foundation Inc.  70.68a-m  © 2009 Estate of Louise Nevelson / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.  Taken from http://whitney.org/ForKids/Collection/LouiseNevelson

"I always wanted to show the world that art is everywhere, except it has to pass through a creative mind.”—Louise Nevelson