"Writing the first comprehensive biography of a major artist could prove daunting, but in the case of Marie-Laure Bernadac's Knife-Woman: The Life of Louise Bourgeois, such an undertaking might be called heroic. Bourgeois lived to the age of 98, still active and furiously making art until the end. And according to Bernadac's thorough and vivid account, the French-American artist kept nearly everything she made, read, wore, or wrote in the course of a long life."
"This includes Bourgeois's massive oeuvre of sculpture, installations, prints, paintings, and drawings, along with letters dating back to her childhood, school notebooks, business transactions (hers and her parents'), and writing from at least as far back as age 11, when she first began keeping a diary. Even the hardiest biographer might buckle under the weight of so much material. Yet Bernadac, a French curator who knew Bourgeois and organized exhibitions of her work during the artist's lifetime, is ideal to take on the task."
Louise Bourgeois lived to age 98 and remained active, producing art until the end. She preserved nearly everything she made, read, wore, or wrote, including sculptures, installations, prints, paintings, drawings, letters from childhood, school notebooks, business transactions, and diary entries beginning at age 11. The resulting archive documents a massive oeuvre and detailed personal record. The material reveals an artist who was emotionally volatile, depressive, competitive, driven, and visionary. The scope and richness of the preserved objects and documents create a foundation for further, deeper studies of life and work.
Read at Hyperallergic
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