Barbara Nessim: Five Feminist Decades of Art
Barbara Nessim: Five Feminist Decades of Art
Of the crop of stellar illustrators America produced during the culture-rocking early 1960s, few have been more notable, enduring and, I would say, magnificent than Barbara Nessim, whose work–though often commissioned for magazines, posters and ads–can as easily be considered art with a capital A. But Nessim, a woman from the Bronx whose talent burst forth at any early age, is far too unpretentious to insist on that label.
A retrospective of Nessim’s career, originally curated by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, is currently on view at the Bard College Graduate Center’s three-floor townhouse gallery on 18 West 86 St. until January 11. To anyone living in or near Manhattan I say: Don’t miss it! The exhibit not only traces the career of this profound, provocative and witty depictor of American women in a comprehensive and intimate way, it is also a cultural journey of over 50-plus years.
Furthermore, it’s a chance to see work by an illustrator who was one of the first to make a splash in the pages of Ms. magazine (see image at top of page). Nessim knew Ms.‘s first art director, the brilliant Bea Feitler, and had worked with her at Glamour magazine–and she also was quite familiar with Ms. cofounder Gloria Steinem, who she roomed with from 1962-1967. “I would say because my work was (naturally) woman-centric, I was a perfect choice [for Ms.] to use as an illustrator,” says Nessim.
I had the pleasure of being guided through the exhibit by the artist, who I had interviewed in 2009 for a profile I was writing on her other roommate from the 1960s, actor Ali MacGraw. Barbara, Ali and Gloria: Talk about three iconic and dazzling young women, on the brink of both reflecting and changing society, each in her own way.
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That’s why it’s worth seeing Barbara Nessim’s retrospective–it’s art as history and life lesson.
http://msmagazine.com/blog/2014/12/31/barbara-nessim-five-feminist-decades-of-art/
her website:
http://www.barbaranessim.com/
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