By Kara Jefts, Museum Collections Manager (kara.jefts@plattsburgh.edu)
Marisol, a Venezuelan-American pop artist, lived from 1930 to 2016. Her fame in the 1960s and 70s surpassed that of Andy Warhol himself. She is most well known for her assemblage sculptures that pulled subversive messages from the pages of magazines such as Life and Time. These sculptures — often made from wood, casts of her own body and found objects — were easily identifiable because of their cultural references, making Marisol’s work wildly popular.
The sculpture from the Plattsburgh State Art Museum collection pictured here, “Untitled (self-portrait),” marks a sharp departure from the work for which Marisol is commonly known.
“Untitled (self-portrait)” marks a period when the artist, frustrated by the war in Vietnam and the state of police violence at home, abandoned the New York art scene and traveled to remote locations around the world where she learned to scuba dive. The sculptures that resulted from this period of travel capture not only the alluring beauty of the ocean, but also reference the growing environmental movement in the 1970s.
A major retrospective of Marisol’s work is touring the United States and Canada and is currently on display at the Buffalo Albright-Knox Art Museum through Jan. 6, 2025. Buffalo AKG was named the custodian of the artist’s estate, making the institution an important stakeholder in protecting and promoting Marisol’s legacy as well as preserving her artwork for generations to come.
This and other artworks relating to social and environmental politics are currently on display in the Myers Arts Building 232.
If you are interested in learning more about the Plattsburgh State Art Museum collection, please contact Kara Jefts at kara.jefts@plattsburgh.edu for information on how to set up a visit, event or class.
