Eugenie Gershoy facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Eugenie Gershoy
Eugenie Gershoy, from the Archives of American Art
Born	(1901-01-01)January 1, 1901 Krivoi Rog, Ukraine
Died	May 8, 1986(1986-05-08) (aged 85)
Nationality	American
Education	Art Students League of New York
Known for	Sculpture, watercolor, painting
Awards	Saint-Gaudens Medal

Eugenie Gershoy (born January 1, 1901 – died May 8, 1986) was an American artist. She was known for her sculptures and watercolor paintings.

Life of an Artist

Early Life and Studies

Eugenie Gershoy was born in Ukraine in 1901. When she was just two years old, her family moved to New York City in 1903.

She loved art and was very talented. She received scholarships to study at the Art Students League of New York. There, she learned from famous artists like Alexander Stirling Calder and Kenneth Hayes Miller.

When she was only 17, Eugenie won the Saint-Gaudens Medal. This award recognized her amazing drawing skills. She also created small sculptures of her artist friends. These were even shown at the Whitney Museum of American Art.

Art and Family Life

Eugenie Gershoy married another artist named Harry Gottlieb. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, they had an art studio in Woodstock, New York. During this time, Eugenie was inspired by sculptor John Flanagan.

Working for the Government

From 1936 to 1939, Eugenie worked for the WPA Federal Art Project. This was a government program that helped artists find work during a difficult time called the Great Depression.

She worked with artist Max Spivak to create murals for a children's room in a library in New York. Eugenie also invented a special mix of materials for her sculptures. She used wheat paste, plaster, and egg tempera to make colorful papier-mâché sculptures. She was the only sculptor in New York using this colorful method then.

Eugenie also designed sculptures of animals and people for playgrounds in New York City. She even joined other artists in a sit-down strike. They wanted better pay and working conditions for artists in the project.

Later Years and Travel

Eugenie Gershoy had her first solo art show in New York in 1940. In 1942, she moved to San Francisco. She started teaching ceramics at the San Francisco Art Institute in 1946. Later, in 1950, she studied at an artists' colony called Yaddo.

Eugenie loved to travel and see the world. In the early 1930s, she visited England and France. She even worked in Paris in 1951. She also traveled to Mexico and Guatemala in the late 1940s. In 1955, she explored Africa, India, and the Orient.

In 1977, Eugenie created a special sculpture for Audrey McMahon. Audrey had helped many struggling artists during the 1930s by being involved with the Federal Art Project.

Today, you can find Eugenie Gershoy's artwork in famous museums. These include the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Her personal papers are kept at Syracuse University.

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