Louise Bourgeois holding Fillette (1968), photographed by Mapplethorpe, 1982
I just finished reading 'Louise Bourgeois: destruction of the father, reconstruction of the father'. The book consists of writings and interviews dated between 1923-1997 edited by Marie-Laure Bernadac and Hans-Ulrich Obrist. Most of the content is in English, some of which was translated from French by Bernadac. Accompagnying the texts are black-and-white photographs of Bourgeois’ childhood, as well as images documenting her various exhibited scupltures. There are drawings, sketches, and scanned pages of her writings.
Bourgeois kept diaries from a young age and throughout her life. She wrote in both French and English, which she mostly did during periods of insomnia. Her creative inspiration stemmed from her childhood traumas. In a few interviews she explained how by reenacting difficult childhood memories using sculpture enabled coming to terms with the experience. The same themes are explored throughout career and have become her drive to create obsessively. This book is a gem. I thoroughly enjoyed it and Louise Bourgeois is undoublty my new found inspiration.