Susan Weil facts for kids

Susan Weil, born on March 31, 1930, is an American artist. She is well-known for her special three-dimensional paintings. These artworks combine pictures of people and objects with ideas about how things move and take up space. Her art often feels like it's coming alive off the canvas!

Life and Artistic Journey

Growing Up and Learning Art

Susan Weil was born in New York City. In the late 1940s, she met another artist named Robert Rauschenberg. They both studied art at the Académie Julian in Paris. Later, in 1948, they went to Black Mountain College in North Carolina. There, they learned from a famous teacher named Josef Albers.

Exploring New Art Techniques

In 1949, Susan taught Robert a cool art trick called making cyanotypes. These are also known as blueprints. She had learned this method as a child. They worked together on many of these blueprint pieces for several years. One of their joint artworks, Blue Print Photogram For Mural Decoration, was shown in a big exhibition. This show, "Abstraction in Photography," was held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1951.

In April 1951, Life magazine featured a three-page story about Susan and Robert. It showed photos of them making blueprints. Many of these special artworks no longer exist today. Susan also studied at the Art Students League of New York. She learned from artists like Vaclav Vytlacil and Morris Kantor.

Family Life and New Beginnings

Susan Weil and Robert Rauschenberg got married in the summer of 1950. Their wedding was at the Weil family home in Connecticut. Their son, Christopher Rauschenberg, was born on July 16, 1951. Susan and Robert separated in June 1952 and later divorced in 1953.

In 1957, Susan asked Bernard Kirschenbaum to build a special art studio for her. It was a geodesic dome in Stony Creek, Connecticut. Susan and Bernard married in 1958. They had a daughter named Sara Kirschenbaum in 1959.

Exhibitions and Creative Works

In 1976, Susan Weil was one of the first artists to live and work at the Institute for Art and Urban Resources Inc. This place is now known as MoMA PS1. Her art was part of their first exhibition, called Rooms, in 1976.

Besides painting and creating mixed media art, Susan has also made unique artist books. She has created several limited edition books with Vincent FitzGerald & Co. since 1985. For eleven years, Susan experimented with etchings and handmade paper. During this time, she also filled daily notebooks with drawings. These drawings were inspired by the writings of James Joyce. Her exhibition, Ear's Eye for James Joyce, was shown in New York in 2003.

Since 2000, Susan has worked with photographer José Betancourt. Together, they have created a series of blueprints.

Recent Exhibitions and Collections

In 2015, Susan Weil's art was featured in an exhibition called Frontiers Reimagined. This show was part of the 56th Venice Biennale, a very important art event. Another notable exhibition was Leap Before You Look: Black Mountain College 1933-1957. This show started in 2015 at the Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center in North Carolina. It then traveled to the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles and the Wexner Center for the Arts in Ohio.

Susan Weil's artwork is held in many major museum collections. These include the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the J. Paul Getty Museum.

Her art has been shown in big solo exhibitions in the United States and Europe. These include shows at the Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center and the Museo Reina Sofia in Madrid. Susan Weil continues to live and create art in New York City.

Awards and Recognition

Susan Weil has received several important awards for her art. She was given the famous Guggenheim Fellowship. She also received awards from the National Endowment for the Arts. These awards recognize her amazing contributions to the art world.