Rhoda Sherbell (born 1933) is a contemporary American sculptor, consultant, and teacher whose work is displayed in prominent institutions and has won many awards.

Life

She was born in Brooklyn; New York gave her access to world class museums that gave her an early appreciation of art. She studied under

William Zorach William Zorach (February 28, 1889 – November 15, 1966) was an American sculptor, painter, printmaker, and writer. He won the Logan Medal of the Arts in 1927. He was at the forefront of American artists embracing cubism. He is the husband of ...

, originally as a painter and then a sculptor. Zorach asked her to paint his and his wife's, Marguerite's portrait, but she refused because it was unimaginative.

Career

Her work has been commissed by the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY as well as private commissions from

Yogi Berra Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (born Lorenzo Pietro Berra; May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of Manager (baseball), manager and Coach (baseball), coach. He played 19 seas ...

Casey Stengel Charles Dillon "Casey" Stengel (; July 30, 1890 – September 29, 1975) was an American Major League Baseball right fielder and Manager (baseball), manager, best known as the manager of the championship New York Yankees of the 1950s and later, t ...

, Daniel Burke and

Aaron Copland Aaron Copland (, ; November 14, 1900December 2, 1990) was an American composer, critic, writer, teacher, pianist, and conductor of his own and other American music. Copland was referred to by his peers and critics as the "Dean of American Compos ...

, among a host of other celebrities. Her sculptures are in the permanent collections of twenty-five museums throughout the country, including the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

, the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM; formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds one of the world's lar ...

, the National Portrait Gallery, the Jewish Museum, the State Museum of Connecticut,

William Benton Museum of Art The William Benton Museum of Art is a public fine arts museum located on the University of Connecticut's main campus in Storrs, Connecticut. The Benton houses a permanent collection of over 6,500 artistic works and hosts special exhibitions, conce ...

, and the Brooklyn Museum. She is a member of the National Academy and is on the board of the Portrait Society of America.

Awards

In 1960, Sherbell was inducted into the

American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, Music of the United States, music, and Visual art of the United States, art. Its fixed number ...

alongside

Philip Roth Philip Milton Roth (; March 19, 1933 – May 22, 2018) was an American novelist and short-story writer. Roth's fiction—often set in his birthplace of Newark, New Jersey—is known for its intensely autobiographical character, for philosophical ...

and

Norman Mailer Nachem Malech Mailer (January 31, 1923 – November 10, 2007), known by his pen name Norman Kingsley Mailer, was an American writer, journalist and filmmaker. In a career spanning more than six decades, Mailer had 11 best-selling books, at least ...

. In 2013, the

National Association of Women Artists The National Association of Women Artists, Inc. (NAWA) is a United States organization, founded in 1889 to gain recognition for professional women fine artists in an era when that field was strongly male-oriented. It sponsors exhibitions, awards ...

awarded Sherbell as Artist of the Year, an award previously won by artists including

Mary Cassatt Mary Stevenson Cassatt (; May 22, 1844June 14, 1926) was an American painter and printmaker. She was born in Allegheny, Pennsylvania (now part of Pittsburgh's North Side (Pittsburgh), North Side), but lived much of her adult life in France, whe ...

and

Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (January 9, 1875 – April 18, 1942) was an American sculptor, art patron and collector, and founder in 1931 of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City. She was a prominent social figure and hostess, ...

. In 2016, she was listed as a faculty member of the Portrait Society of America She has won awards at the National Sculpture Society; the Presidents Award at National Arts Club; is the recipient of a Ford Foundation Grant; Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Grant; Allied Artists Award; Medal of Honor, Audubon Artists; and several awards at the National Academy.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sherbell, Rhoda Living people 20th-century American sculptors 1933 births 21st-century American sculptors 21st-century American women sculptors Artists from Brooklyn Sculptors from New York (state) National Academy of Design members Members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters 20th-century American women sculptors