Hedda Sterne

Hedda Sterne (born Hedwig Lindenberg; August 4, 1910 – April 8, 2011)[1] was an artist best remembered as the only woman in a famous photograph of a group of Abstract Expressionists known as "The Irascibles" which consisted of Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Barnett Newman, Mark Rothko, and others. In her artistic endeavors she created a body of work known for exhibiting a stubborn independence from styles and trends, including Surrealism and Abstract Expressionism, with which she is often associated.Sterne has been almost completely overlooked in art historical narratives of the post-war American art scene. At the time of her death, possibly the last surviving artist of the first generation of the New York School, Hedda Sterne viewed her widely varied works more as in flux than as definitive statements. Wikipedia

 Hedda Sterne was a prolific artist whose independent approach to painting and drawing provides insight into our evolving understanding of the history of modern art. Born in Bucharest, Romania, Sterne began her formal artistic education in Vienna in the 1920s, and in Paris in the 1930s, where she exhibited with the Surrealists. Following her emigration to the United States in 1941, she became an active member of the New York School. Sterne’s work has been shown in more than 40 solo exhibitions, many at the Betty Parsons Gallery, and more than 70 group exhibitions in museums and galleries in the U.S. and abroad. Throughout her eight-decade-long career, Sterne’s artistic practice was a path of discovery in which her prolific oeuvre would defy any single categorization. She once said, “I use my work to delve into the deep questions of existence. My life is a work of art.”  Hedda Sterne’s varied and fluid styles reflect this artistic philosophy of “flux,” and distinguish Sterne as a unique figure in the history of 20th century art.(The Hedda Sterne Foundation)

Hedda Sterne was a key participant in influential movements of 20th-century art, including European Surrealism and the New York School. However, throughout her long career, Sterne was unconcerned with finding a signature style in her artistic practice. Unique among her contemporaries, Sterne chose to explore various techniques and sources of inspiration. The following select artworks represent various periods and themes from seven decades.
   “Hedda was always searching, never satisfied. She had many ways; most artists just have one way to go.”
    – Betty Parsons(The Hedda Sterne Foundation)