Marisol
Venezuelan, born 1930

Have you ever felt alone in a crowded room?  Marisol, a prominent member of the 1960s New York art and social scene, claims that while she attended many parties, she always felt alienated from everyone else in the room.  She recreates that sense of isolation in The Party, an installation consisting of mirrored wall panels and 15 freestanding figures adorned with real accessories and clothing.  A distinctive feature of many of Marisol’s sculptures is her repeated use of self-portraiture. All of the faces in The Party are modeled on her own. 

Born Marisol Escobar to Venezuelan parents, Marisol studied in Europe, Los Angeles, and New York before dropping her surname and catapulting to artistic fame in the 1960s. The only woman associated with the Pop Art movement, in 1968 she was invited to represent Venezuela at the prestigious Venice Biennale, where she exhibited The Party.

Assemblage with 15 figures and 3 wall panels with painted and carved wood, mirrors, plastic, television set, clothes, shoes, glasses, and other accessories, 1965-66
Museum Purchase Fund, by exchange, 2005.42
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