Mel Edwards

Mel Edwards
Born
Melvin Eugene Edwards, Jr.

(1937-05-04) May 4, 1937 (age 87)
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Southern California
Known forSculpture
Spouse(s)Karen Hamre, (m. 1960–1969, divorce),
Jayne Cortez, (m. 1976–2012, her death)
WebsiteOfficial website

Melvin "Mel" Edwards (born May 4, 1937)[1][2] is an American artist, teacher, and abstract steel-metal sculptor. Additionally he has worked in drawing and printmaking. His artwork has political content often referencing African-American history, as well as the exploration of themes within slavery.[1][3] Visually his works are characterized by the use of straight-edged triangular and rectilinear forms in metal. He lives between Upstate New York and in Plainfield, New Jersey.[4]

He has had more than a dozen one-person show exhibits and been in over four dozen group shows. Edwards has had solo exhibitions at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), and the New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, New Jersey.

  1. ^ a b Samella S. Lewis, African American Art and Artists, University of California Press, 2003, p. 210. ISBN 0-520-23935-0
  2. ^ Lisa S. Weitzman, "Edwards, Melvin 1937–", encyclopedia.com.
  3. ^ Jegede, Dele (2009). Encyclopedia of African American Artists. ABC-CLIO. pp. 77–80. ISBN 9780313080609.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).