Artist Database

Louise Bourgeois, born in Paris in 1911, was a pioneering French-American artist known for her powerful explorations of identity, memory, and the subconscious. She studied mathematics at the Sorbonne before shifting her focus to art, attending several art schools in Paris, including the École des Beaux-Arts and the Académie de la Grande Chaumière, and under notable artists like Ferdinand Léger and André Lhote. Bourgeois moved to New York City in 1938, where she continued her studies at the Art Students League. Her work, spanning over seven decades, delves into early childhood trauma and female sexuality, often using motifs like body parts, houses, and spiders. Bourgeois’ art blends personal symbolism with psychological exploration, employing diverse media and materials.

Throughout her career, Bourgeois received numerous accolades, including a major retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in 1982 and her representation of the USA at the 45^th Venice Biennale in 1993. In 2000, she created the inaugural special commission for the Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall. Bourgeois’ work is in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Tate Gallery in London, and the Guggenheim, amongst others.