An American Sculptor: Seymour Lipton

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Dr. Lori’s first major book was sparked by an inquiry asked by her father, a World War II veteran. He asked his art historian daughter about the impact of the art made in America during his lifetime–Abstract Expressionism of the 1940s and 1950s. Abstract Expressionism was the major modern art movement in the United States after the Second World War. This style of art catapulted American artists to the forefront of the global art world. New York City became the center of the art world and the artists working in New York during the late 1940 thru the 1950s remain some of the most important artists–such as Jackson Pollock, Willem DeKooning, Mark Rothko, Robert Motherwell, and others– in the history of art.

While the Abstract Expressionist painters basked in the art world’s spotlight, the Abstract Expressionist sculptors received only modest acclaim from critics and the general public. Based on her dissertation to meet the requirements for her Ph.D. from Penn State University, Dr. Lori’s groundbreaking book, An American Sculptor: Seymour Lipton, revealed New York born sculptor Seymour Lipton (1903-86) as more than just an innovator in the art studio but also one of the movement’s inspired thinkers. Lipton was one of the movement’s most influential and prolific sculptors and his creation of the rust-proof alloy called Monel metal was vital to the history of constructed metal sculpture however his works, from an intellectual point of view, derived from the broader context of American society during and after World War II. Dr. Lori’s book did not simply provide an investigation into Lipton’s studio practices but also made a scholarly investigation into Lipton’s impact on the history of Abstract Expressionist art and the history of modern constructed metal sculpture.