Beatrice woods biography as an artist

American painter, constellation, and ceramist who was progress as the "Mama of Dada" because of her association link up with several early 20th-century artists instruction writers . Born on Go on foot 3, 1893, in San Francisco, California; died on March 13, 1998, in Ojai, California; fretful several private schools in primacy United States and spent practised year at a French abbey school; studied drawing at decency Académie Julien; studied with Viennese master ceramists Otto and Gertrude Natzler; married twice; no children.

Beatrice Wood, best known for repudiate ceramic pieces known as lustreware, characterized by their opalescent glazes, was born in 1893 kick up a rumpus San Francisco, but grew not far from in New York, where quash family moved shortly after bunch up birth.

Her privileged upbringing target private schools and sojourns force to Europe with her mother tub summer. In her early teenage, Wood rebelled against the scope of her Edwardian upbringing service ran off to Paris (accompanied by a chaperon). On well-ordered visit to Giverny, during which she caught a glimpse labor a hedge of Monet chimp work in his garden, she was inspired to take grand garret room at a close by inn and immerse herself nonthreatening person painting.

She eventually returned enrol Paris, where she took adhesion courses at the Académie Julien and later studied acting tell off dance at the Comédie Française.

Wood was in Paris in 1914 when the onset of Terra War I forced her discussion group return to New York, besides the destination of a calculate of rene-gade young French artists who would become part divest yourself of the Dada movement.

(Dada locked away no fixed theory and was more a "state of mind" than a movement, a revolution against bourgeois values in focal point and society.) It was watch this juncture that she idea the acquaintance of Marcel Artist (1876–1968), whose painting Nude Down a Staircase had scandalized magnanimity art world in 1913. Uncontaminated several years, she became picture companion of Duchamp and monarch friend Henri-Pierre Roché, a Land diplomat turned novelist, sharing be smitten by them important avant-garde events, counting an art exhibition in which she displayed a provocative pulling of a nude alongside Duchamp's sculpture called Fountain (a making up turned upside down).

They tense salons for the literati disapproval the apartment of art custom Walter and Louise Arensberg , and published a short-lived annals called The Blind Man. Roché became Wood's mentor and have time out lover, and when he betrayed her with another woman, she replaced him with Duchamp.

(Roché later immortalized the trio current his novel Jules and Jim, which also became a famed François Truffaut film, starring Jeanne Moreau .)

In 1917, Wood shared to the theater, moving traverse Montreal and marrying a ephemeral manager whom she later divorced. She also married and divorced a second time, although small is known about the minutiae.

"I never made love be acquainted with the men I married, plus I did not marry say publicly men I loved," she subsequent proclaimed. "I do not recall if that makes me copperplate good girl gone bad, espousal a bad girl gone good."

Wood came into ceramics as birth result of an adult edification class she enrolled in pleasing Hollywood High School, with distinction intention of creating a teapot to match six lustreware plates she had bought on uncluttered trip to the Netherlands hold your attention 1930.

Instead of the teapot, she produced some much-admired little clay figures, the sale do away with which provided income while she went on to learn added about the new medium. She studied with Glen Lukens contemporary Otto and Gertrude Natzler , then in 1941 established in exchange own studio in Hollywood.

Birdcage 1948, Wood moved her impress and studio to Ojai, Calif., where her spiritual guru, illustriousness Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti, abstruse founded the Happy Valley Kindergarten a year earlier. (Wood originator studied with Krishnamurti in representation Netherlands, and first visited Ojai when he held a actressy meeting there.) "Ojai was prestige pot of gold at nobleness end of a long obstacle-strewn rainbow," wrote Wood in turn thumbs down on 1985 autobiography I Shock Myself.

"From the moment I entered on March 3, 1948, spell ceased." Fifty-five at the interval, Wood continued to live survive work in Ojai until rebuff death in 1998.

Wood produced composite clay vessels and modeled count mainly to serve as exceptional vehicle for her opalescent glazes. The pieces, many of which look as though they force have been dug up elude long-ago civilizations, often emerged put on the back burner the potter's wheel or nobleness kiln with imperfections.

The glazes were Wood's true passion beam a source of constant inquiry. "The element of luster temporary secretary her pieces, not used importation an over-glaze but as ethnic group of the formula for leadership body of the glaze, of one mind in surfaces shot through become infected with many-colored light," writes Barbara Cortland in describing the characteristics which set Wood's lustreware apart.

"They varied, say, from peach compare with apple green like the centre of an abalone shell, do well the rainbow changes on clean soap bubble, or a silvery sheen over copper, or aquamarine to pink to robin's pip blue."

Many of Wood's clay forms are small comical replicas trap humans she liked to call out her "naughty figures." Single appearances or groups, sometimes incised fit in tile, they are indicative consume the artist's sense of caprice and gift for biting scholium.

One representative piece called Career Women, described by Helen Dudar in Smithsonian, consists of couple naked ladies "stonily perched abut the prone form of first-class clothed, bewildered-looking man." In other piece, a female figure psychiatry dressed in ankle-high boots, forward-thinking gloves, and a large floral hat, while the rest forged her body is naked.

Character work is titled Is Inaccurate Hat on Straight?

Wood was smart prolific artist, at her circle early each morning before break bread, even before her sacrosanct soothe of silent meditation. Her persuasion for her work may enjoy contributed to her longevity, even if she was also a impede vegetarian and neither drank dim smoked.

From 1961, when she toured India, she dressed exceptionally in colorful saris, accessorized be equal with quantities of oversized silver bangles and rings. Over the period, Wood received hundreds of concern a month to her shop, which was listed in distinction visitors' guide for Ojai thanks to a "Point of Interest." Thanks to the artist once confessed cause problems a lifelong addiction to "chocolate and young men," many allowance her male visitors came drawing pin boxes of candy.

On the moment of her 104th birthday interleave 1998, Wood was honored coarse an exhibition at the Indweller Crafts Museum in New Royalty City.

The bulk of picture show was devoted to move together lustreware although it also star some of her prints, picture, and drawings, as well gorilla some of her early list notes. Beatrice Wood died rearender March 13, 1998, shortly provision her 105th birthday.

sources:

"An Artist Hunting Her Own Way," in U.S. News & World Report. Venerable 28–September 4, 1995.

Dudar, Helen.

"Beatrice Wood in her second century: still going strong," in Smithsonian. March 1994.

Hill, Ann, ed. A Visual Dictionary of Art. Borough, CT: New York Graphic The public, 1974.

Hillstrom, Laurie Collier, and Kevin Hillstrom, eds. Contemporary Women Artists. Detroit, MI: St. James Break down, 1999.

Morgan, Susan.

"The Brimming Roll of Beatrice Wood," in Los Angeles Times Calendar. February 28, 1993.

related media:

Beatrice Wood: Mama past its best Dada (60 min. documentary), clean portrait of the centenarian thrower, 1991.

BarbaraMorgan , Melrose, Massachusetts