Louise Nevelson (American, born Ukraine, 1899–1988). <em>First Personage</em>, 1956. Painted wood, a: 94 × 37 1/16 × 11 1/4 in. (238.8 × 94.1 × 28.6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Berliawsky, 57.23a-b. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 57.23a-b_PS11.jpg)

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Louise Nevelson (American, born Ukraine, 1899–1988). First Personage, 1956. Painted wood, a: 94 × 37 1/16 × 11 1/4 in. (238.8 × 94.1 × 28.6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Berliawsky, 57.23a-b. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 57.23a-b_PS11.jpg)

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Tell me more.

This is such a fascinating piece; I love how it changes depending on where you are standing. This large, textured, black wooden sculpture is characteristic of Nevelson's work, especially in the 1950s.

Nevelson is considered a pioneer as a woman artist, as a feminist artist, and as an abstract sculptor.

In the mid-20th century, prominent abstract sculptors like Isamu Noguchi and Alexander Calder were working primarily in stone and metal. In contrast, Nevelson favored found materials, especially wood.

First Personage

Louise Nevelson

Contemporary Art

On View: American Art Galleries, 5th Floor, Counterparts

Louise Nevelson emerged as an artist in the early 1940s, against criticism that she was neglecting the roles of wife and mother and biased skepticism about a female sculptor’s physical and intellectual strength. Nevelson’s totemic wood construction evokes the psychological tension between interior and exterior. As suggested by the sculpture’s title, the undulating frontal slab represents the controlled, outer persona, while the spiky column behind intimates a hidden, agitated, and chaotic self. First Personage features found, splintered, rough, and broken pieces of wood and is one of the first examples that the artist composed in what would become her iconic form.

ARTIST Louise Nevelson, American, born Ukraine, 1899–1988

MEDIUM Painted wood

DATES 1956

DIMENSIONS a: 94 × 37 1/16 × 11 1/4 in. (238.8 × 94.1 × 28.6 cm) b: 73 11/16 × 24 3/16 × 7 1/4 in. (187.2 × 61.4 × 18.4 cm) (show scale)

SIGNATURE "NEVELSON" carved into the wood on the base of component b

COLLECTIONS Contemporary Art

ACCESSION NUMBER 57.23a-b

CREDIT LINE Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Berliawsky

PROVENANCE By February 1957, acquired from the artist by Nathan Berliawsky and Lillian Midwolf Berliawsky (Mrs. Nathan Berliawsky) of Rockland, ME; February 13, 1957, gift of Nathan and Lilian Berliawsky to the Brooklyn Museum.

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EXHIBITIONS

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is on view in American Art Galleries, 5th Floor, Counterparts

CAPTION Louise Nevelson (American, born Ukraine, 1899–1988). First Personage, 1956. Painted wood, a: 94 × 37 1/16 × 11 1/4 in. (238.8 × 94.1 × 28.6 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Berliawsky, 57.23a-b. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 57.23a-b_PS11.jpg)

IMAGE overall, 57.23a-b_PS11.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2022

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Download our app and ask your own questions during your visit. Here are some that others have asked.

Tell me more.

Nevelson is considered a pioneer as a woman artist, as a feminist artist, and as an abstract sculptor.