| Louise Nevelson Plaza | |
|---|---|
 Louise Nevelson Plaza following the 2007–2010 redesign | |
 | |
| Type | Public art installation and park |
| Location | Lower Manhattan, New York City |
| Coordinates | 40°42′27″N 74°00′29″W / 40.7076284°N 74.0079322°W |
| Opening | 1977 (Legion Memorial Square); 1978 (Louise Nevelson Plaza) |
| Designer | Louise Nevelson |
Louise Nevelson Plaza (formerly known as Legion Memorial Square), is a public art installation and park in Lower Manhattan, New York City, which includes an arrangement of large abstract sculptures designed by the American 20th-century female artist Louise Nevelson. Described as an "outdoor environment",[1] the triangle-shaped plaza is bounded by Maiden Lane, Liberty Street and William Street, adjacent to the building of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The original site, created to display seven large-scale abstract sculptures commissioned from Nevelson by New York City, opened in 1977 as Legion Memorial Square. Officially inaugurated as Louise Nevelson Plaza in 1978, it marked the city's first public space named after and designed by a living artist.[2]: 90 The plaza, while suffering from poor maintenance, remained mostly unchanged for many years. However, following the September 11 attacks in 2001, a security booth was installed, the first deviation from Nevelson's original design.
By 2007, faded sculptures and required sub-surface repairs led to a comprehensive redesign by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, the New York City Department of Transportation, and the New York City Department of Design and Construction. Reopened in 2010, the updated plaza featured new ground cover, an elevated platform, benches, plantings, and rearranged, restored Nevelson sculptures. Despite criticism from some art historians for altering the original concept, Louise Nevelson's granddaughter Maria Nevelson supported the renovations, citing her grandmother's embrace of the "now" over the past.[3]
- ^ Cullen-DuPont, Kathryn (2000). Encyclopedia of Women's History in America (2nd ed.). New York: Facts on File, Inc. p. 185. ISBN 0-8160-4100-8.
- ^ Wilson, Laurie (February 2011). "Light and Shadow in the Life and Work of Louise Nevelson". Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association. 59 (1): 89–108. doi:10.1177/0003065111403148. ISSN 0003-0651. PMID 21606519. S2CID 2378353 – via SAGE Journals.
- ^ Devine, Leigh (2010-09-10). "Artist's Slice of City Is Restored to Life". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2023-04-02.