Costantino Nivola's New York Legacy Explored at Cooper Union

The exhibition 'Nivola in New York. Figure in Field' at Cooper Union in Manhattan, on view until March 15, 2020, examines the public art legacy of Sardinian-born artist Costantino Nivola (1911–1988) in New York City. Curated by Steven Hillyer and Roger Broome, the show features maquettes, sculptures, drawings, photographs, and a timeline documenting four decades of collaborations with architects. Nivola fled fascist Italy in 1939 with his Jewish wife Ruth Guggenheim and created 21 public artworks across the city's five boroughs, 17 of which survive. The exhibition highlights his sandcasting technique, developed in the 1950s at his Long Island home, which he used for the Olivetti showroom on Fifth Avenue (now demolished) and other commissions. Four major projects are featured: a sandcast relief for William E. Grady High School (1953), the Stephen Wise Recreation Area (1962) in Upper West Side, and bronze plaques for the 19th Police and Fire Department District. A guide to Nivola's extant works accompanies the show, and an expanded version will travel to the Museo Costantino Nivola in Orani, Sardinia in summer 2020.