Night Flight #1 - Louise Nevelson

Where is it?

Mezzanine Level

Nevelson’s piece is displayed in the Airport Conference Center on the balcony that overlooks the Gina Marie Lindsey Hall.

About the Art

Night Flight #1 is a defining example of Nevelson's stunning oeuvre. This piece has nine separate box sculptures made up of various found objects all combined with an irregular frame. The objects include the back of a chair, pieces of molding, and wooden disks. Nevelson gave her work a sense of mystery with a coat of her favorite color, "aristocratic black." Her enigmatic work embodies movement and harmony on a monumental scale.

The Details

Artist

Louise Nevelson

Date

1973

Medium

Sculpture (wood, found objects, acrylic paint)

Dimensions

6' 9" high x 10' 4" wide

Did you know?

Louise Nevelson often referred to herself as an "architect of shadows."

About the Artist

Typically made of wood or cast resin, Nevelson’s pieces are pieced together like puzzles as she thoughtfully positioned fragmented debris within a historicizing, narrative context. These monumental sculptures are comprised of found objects that Nevelson discovered on the streets and painted a single shade of color, creating truly absolute shadows.

"I don't want to make sculpture and I don't want to make paintings; I'm not looking to make anything. I myself need, for my place of consciousness, a form. It's almost like you are an architect that's building through shadow and light and dark." – Louise Nevelson

Short Bio

Nevelson was born in Czarist Russia in 1899 and immigrated to the U.S. in her early childhood. The elements that informed her artistic identity— her relocation to America, her artistic training in New York and Germany, her womanhood— collectively provided the conceptual framework to her pieces.

Working within the male-dominated realm of the gallery system in the era of Abstract Expressionism, Nevelson is considered an essential contributor to the development of the installation and Feminist art movements. Her pieces remain timelessly and tragically eerie.

Similar Artwork

At the Airport

Nevelson's Night Flight #1, recalling the depth inherent to shadow boxes, has many fundamental similarities to James Schoppert's Modern Mask at the Sea-Tac Airport. Both pieced together to resemble unity from disjunction, the multi-dimensional sculptures provide character to the airport. Click on the STQRY link to see Schoppert's piece.

Night Flight #1 - Louise Nevelson

As you examine the individual motifs of the piece, you will find shapes that remind you of travel.