Mary Ann Unger: To Shape a Moon from Bone

On the feminist sculpture and interventions of the Guerrilla Girls member and veteran of New York’s 1980s art scene

Rising to prominence in the downtown New York art scene of the 1980s and 1990s, Mary Ann Unger (1945-98) was skilled in graphic composition, watercolor, large-scale conceptual sculpture and environmentally responsive, site-specific interventions. Unger was a member of the Guerrilla Girls and is acknowledged as a feminist pioneer of neo-expressionist sculptural form. This monograph brings together 50 images of the artist’s work, often monumental sculpture formed into organic shapes. Taking the reprinting of Roberta Smith’s 1999 obituary for Unger as a starting point, the book’s essays provide the first full consideration of Unger, tracing her life, her studies and her network of artists and mentors. This catalog also includes an interview with Unger’s daughter, the artist Eve Biddle.