ClaireFalkenstein
Biography
Claire Falkenstein (1908,Coos Bay, Oregon – 1997, Venice, California) was an American artist celebrated for her pioneering work in sculpture, painting, printmaking, jewelry design, and education. Born in Coos Bay, Oregon, she moved to Berkeley, California, with her family in 1920. Falkenstein earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1930, where she majored in art and minored in anthropology and philosophy. Even before completing her degree, she held her first solo exhibition at the East-West Gallery in San Francisco in 1930. During the 1930s, Falkenstein taught at various institutions, including UC Berkeley Extension, Mills College, and the California Labor School. She also taught at the California School of Fine Arts, alongside prominent abstract expressionists like Clyfford Still and Richard Diebenkorn. In 1950, Falkenstein moved to Paris, where she maintained a studio on the Left Bank for thirteen years. During this period, she engaged with the European art scene and collaborated with renowned artists such as Jean Arp and Alberto Giacometti. Her time in Paris had a profound influence on her work, leading her to explore "topology" and the concept of continuous voids in nature. She was also mentored by art connoisseur Michel Tapié, who played a significant role in promoting her career. Returning to the United States in the late 1950s, Falkenstein continued her work as an educator at the San Francisco Art Institute. In 1963, she relocated to Venice, California, where she worked on a series of public art commissions. Notable among these were her designs for "U as a Set" at the International Sculpture Symposium at California State University, Long Beach, and her work on the doors, gates, and stained-glass windows of St. Basil Catholic Church in Los Angeles. Throughout her career, Falkenstein received numerous honors, including the Los Angeles Times Woman of the Year for Art Award in 1969 and a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1978. She passed away on October 23, 1997, in Venice, California, leaving behind a significant legacy of innovation and a lasting influence on 20th-century art.
