Marco Polo Di Suvero

Style: Abstract Expressionism;

Place: Shanghai

Born: 1933

Biography:

Marco Polo di Suvero (born September 18, 1933), better known as Mark di Suvero, is an abstract expressionist sculptor and 2010 National Medal of Arts recipient. Di Suvero was born in Shanghai, China, to Matilde Millo di Suvero and Vittorio di Suvero (later known as Victor E.), both Italians of Sephardic Jewish descent. He was one of four children, the eldest being Victor di Suvero. His father was a U.S. Navy attaché for the Italian government, and the family lived in Shanghai until his father was relocated to Tientsin shortly after the birth of the family's last son in 1936. With the outbreak of World War II, di Suvero immigrated to San Francisco with his family in February 1941 aboard the S.S. President Cleveland. Di Suvero attended City College of San Francisco from 1953 to 1954, and then the University of California, Santa Barbara from 1954 to 1955. He began creating sculptures while at the University of California, Santa Barbara after learning that he was unable to make an original contribution as part of his philosophy major. He transferred to the University of California, Berkeley and graduated with a B.A. in philosophy in 1957. After graduating from college, di Suvero moved to New York City in 1957 to begin a sculpting art career. He worked part-time in construction and began to incorporate wood and metal from demolition sites into his work. Di Suvero gained an recognition among art critics with his first solo exhibit at the Green Gallery in Manhattan in the fall of 1960. The editor of Arts Magazine wrote, 'From now on nothing will be the same. One felt this at di Suvero's show. Here was a body of work at once so ambitious and intelligent, so raw and clean, so noble and accessible, that It must permanently alter our standards of artistic effort.' On March 26, 1960, while working at a construction site, he was involved in a near-fatal elevator accident, resulting in a broken back and severe spinal injuries. Treating physicians initially believed he would be unable to walk again. While in rehabilitation, however, he learned to work with an arc welder, which he used in later pieces. His recovery took four years. By 1965, he was able to walk without assistance. He is one of the 16 artists featured in Chronicles of Courage: Very Special Artists, a book that featured the accident and the subsequent effect it had on his health.