Wood work: Louise Nevelson’s monochrome sculptures fill Pace London
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

In the flamboyant heyday that was post-war New York, a 60-year-old Russian expat with fake eyelashes and a passion for headscarves was the artist of the moment.
Photographed by Cecil Beaton and Robert Mapplethorpe, Louise Nevelson is now considered to be one of the most iconic and vital figures in the art world, regarded for her groundbreaking sculptural environments and her contribution to installation art, defying categorisation. Paving the way for the development of feminist art in the 1970s, Nevelson’s work challenged the taboo that only men’s work could be large-scale.
For the 26th time since 1963, and her Pace Gallery London debut, Nevelson's work will take over Pace Gallery with a show surveying her work from the mid-1950s until her death in 1988. Salvaging small pieces of scrap wood from old buildings and then nailing and gluing them together, Nevelson created sculptures which ranged from small assemblages to free-standing columns and monumental wall-based works, then painting them in a solid colour – most famously black or white. The artist purposefully selected wooden objects for their evocative potential, however after having risen to fame for her wooden sculptures, she also explored materials such as plexiglass, aluminium and steel.
In addition to the presentation of a collection of significant monochrome sculptures, the exhibition will also include steel maquettes the artist produced for public spaces, exhibited in Chicago and at Harvard University. Thames & Hudson will also be releasing a book about the artist next autumn called Louise Nevelson: Light and Shadow by Laurie Wilson.
During the mid-1950s she produced her first batch of black wood sculptures, which the Whitney Museum decided to acquire, leading to her big break
Despite the unconventional materials used in her art, Nevelson’s works established her reputation for sculptural bravado
Although primarily a sculptor, Nevelson shared with abstract expressionist painters an interest in creating large works that play with line, flatness and scale
Like her contemporaries Mark Rothko and Barnett Newman, Nevelson was interested in the sublime and spiritual transcendence
Outside of her influence on feminist art, her sculpture also heavily influenced the development of installation art of the late 1960s and 1970s
Nevelson’s work is fundamental to the history of feminist art, as it challenged the dominant stereotype of the macho, male sculptor
Untitled, c. late 1970s, wood painted black. Courtesy of Pace Gallery
INFORMATION
Louise Nevelson will be on view until 16 July. For more information visit Pace Gallery London’s website (opens in new tab)
Photography: Courtesy of Pace Gallery London
ADDRESS
6 Burlington Gardens, London W1S 3ET
VIEW GOOGLE MAPS (opens in new tab)
-
Haute couture week S/S 2023: everything you need to know
Feats of craft and imagination have defined this season’s couture offering, shown this week in Paris. Here, we round up the best of haute couture week S/S 2023
By Jack Moss • Published
-
Modernist architecture: inspiration from across the globe
Modernist architecture has had a tremendous influence on today’s built environment, making these midcentury marvels some of the most closely studied 20th-century buildings; check back soon for new additions to our list
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
National Portrait Gallery unveils new brand identity and programme ahead of 2023 reopening
London’s National Portrait Gallery has revealed its new branding and full 2023-2024 programming information ahead of its much-anticipated June 2023 reopening
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
London art exhibitions: a guide for early 2023
Your guide to the best London art exhibitions, and those around the UK, as chosen by the Wallpaper* arts desk
By Harriet Lloyd Smith • Published
-
Michael Heizer’s Nevada ‘City’: the land art masterpiece that took 50 years to conceive
Michael Heizer’s City in the Nevada Desert (1972-2022) has been awarded ‘Best eighth wonder’ in the 2023 Wallpaper* design awards. We explore how this staggering example of land art came to be
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
Cyprien Gaillard on chaos, reorder and excavating a Paris in flux
We interviewed French artist Cyprien Gaillard ahead of his major two-part show, ‘Humpty \ Dumpty’ at Palais de Tokyo and Lafayette Anticipations (until 8 January 2023). Through abandoned clocks, love locks and asbestos, he dissects the human obsession with structural restoration
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
Cerith Wyn Evans: ‘I love nothing more than neon in direct sunlight. It’s heartbreakingly beautiful’
Cerith Wyn Evans reflects on his largest show in the UK to date, at Mostyn, Wales – a multisensory, neon-charged fantasia of mind, body and language
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
Vanessa Beecroft’s ethereal performance and sculpture exhibition explore Sicily’s cultural history
At the historic Palazzo Abatellis, Sicily, Vanessa Beecroft has unveiled ‘VB94’, a new tableau vivant comprising a one-time performance and a new series of sculptures, the latter on view until 8 January
By Hili Perlson • Published
-
The World Reimagined revisits the history of the transatlantic slave trade through art
Ahead of a Bonhams auction on 21 November, The World Reimagined will conclude with an epic finale in Trafalgar Square this weekend (19 and 20 November). The initiative uses art to illuminate the history of the transatlantic slave trade, inviting us ‘to face our shared history with honesty, empathy and grace’.
By Amah-Rose Mcknight Abrams • Published
-
Theaster Gates’ New Museum exhibition meditates on mourning, materials and community
Theaster Gates talks about his first US museum show, ‘Young Lords and Their Traces’ at The New Museum
By Pei-Ru Keh • Published
-
Rashid Johnson in Menorca: a journey through migration, longing and togetherness
We visited Rashid Johnson’s Brooklyn studio ahead of the artist’s show at Hauser & Wirth Menorca, which contemplates drift – physical and emotional
By Osman Can Yerebakan • Published