Noah Purifoy Foundation

Happy Mother's Day from NPF! Below is "Old Woman (Washer Woman)", 1990. Noah created this sculpture as a tribute to his mother. Georgia Mims Purifoy was mother to a rather close-knit family of thirteen children of which Noah was the third youngest. She went to school up to the eighth grade and was a teacher in the summertime in Selma, Alabama. She died around 1940. - Noah's recollections in an interview in 1990 for UCLA Library, for Oral History Research.

Today is International Jazz Day! I wanted to share a couple of vintage photos to celebrate Noah's love of jazz and its importance in the development of his artistic life and practice. Below is Noah sitting in front of the hifi cabinet he designed and built. It was selected for California Design 6 in 1960, a high profile exhibition at the Pasadena Art Museum. The second image is of Noah's apartment on La Brea Avenue in LA where he installed this cabinet. "...Well I got intere...sted in high fidelity and sound and record collection. I was already a student of jazz...I wasn't satisfied with just the sound coming out of two speakers. I had to apply my skills and construct a nine-foot cabinet to hold my instruments. I designed my own speakers, and the sound was superb. And people came from far and near to hear. I was stepping over people over the weekend whom I didn't even know. They were flopping at my pad all day and all night. But I encouraged this because I had a need to want to understand people. I had a problem with people. You're not supposed to have a problem with people if you're going to influence them. So I had a need for people to gather around me, and they came from everywhere..." - Noah in an interview with Karen Anne Mason for UCLA Library, Center for Oral History, 1990.

April is National Poetry Month! Along with making assemblage artwork Noah also wrote essays and poetry throughout his life. This poem was hand printed and bound in the book with the same name, "A Book Flown", published by "Join for the Arts" in Watts. Filled with poetry and images of newly created artork, a limited edition of only 100 copies was created in 1967.

Adidas did a film shoot last month for their Pharrell Williams spring line of Premium Basics. Along with stills they created this video with lovely shots of the Museum and Noah's quotations (not his voice though ) throughout. It's great exposure for the Museum and Noah's artwork. Maybe it ignites curiosity in those that wouldn't normally be exposed to his work!

More artwork damaged by the winds last week. Sad to see this piece completely fallen! We are bracing for more winds this week, blowing at 12-16 mph. Hopefully our restoration crew can make it out soon to make repairs! Artwork in photo is "Untitled (Car Parts), 1993.

KCET/Artbound will be airing a new episode that focuses on the Watts Towers Arts Center, co-founded in the 1960's by Noah Purifoy who served as director through 1966. The first airing will be tomorrow, October 21 at 9:00pm PT. For more information check out the website: https://www.kcet.org//episodes/the-watts-towers-arts-center

After canceling our Spring Restoration Day due to the pandemic we made a visit to the Museum last week to check out the condition of the artwork. We found a lot of missing siding, peeling paint, sculptures that need shoring up and damage due to vandalism. We definitely have our work cut out for us at our Fall Restoration Weekend! The Foundation would like to thank all of you that have visited and donated online or at the Museum. If you would like to contribute please go to our website at http://www.noahpurifoy.com/donate. All proceeds go directly towards our restoration and preservation efforts.

Franklin Sirmans, co-curator of "Junk Dada", the Noah Purifoy retrospective at LACMA in 2015 will be leading an online discussion of "The Art and Life of Noah Purifoy" TODAY at 1:00pm. For more information click the link below! https://myvalleynews.com/msjc-art-gallery-to-host-discussi/

Happy Birthday Noah Purifoy! Born on August 17, 1917, Noah would have turned 103 today! He is seen here in the early 1990's at the Outdoor Museum with "V-Shaped Sculpture", 1989 and "Chairs", 1991.

NPF sends birthday greetings to Betye Saar who turns 94 today! We recently found these photos in our archives which were taken at an award ceremony in 1998 at the Gamble House in Pasadena. Noah was with esteemed company! Artists (from left to right in second photo) Noah, Chris Burden, Nancy Rubins, Betye Saar and John Divola were each awarded $25,000 grants from the Flintridge Foundation to further their creative work. Noah used his grant to purchase a brand new pick up truck which is still parked across the street from the Outdoor Museum today!