Sculptor Fred Eversley, Known for Merging Art and Science, Dies at 83
# Remembering Fred Eversley: The Artist Who Merged Science and Light
Fred Eversley, a pioneering artist known for his mesmerizing parabolic sculptures that fused art with science, passed away on March 14, 2024, at the age of 83. His legacy is deeply embedded in the Light and Space Movement of Southern California, yet his work stood apart due to its scientific precision and technical mastery rather than spiritual abstraction.
## The Early Years: A Fusion of Art and Engineering
Born in Brooklyn in 1941, Eversley exhibited an early interest in science. His fascination with the parabolic form emerged from childhood experiments using a turntable and a jell-o-filled pie plate. He pursued electrical engineering at the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) and later moved to Los Angeles in 1963 to work as an engineer for Wyle Laboratories, specializing in acoustics for NASA laboratories.
Settling in Venice Beach, one of the few integrated neighborhoods in Los Angeles at the time, Eversley built strong connections with notable artists such as Judy Chicago and Larry Bell, assisting them with technical challenges. However, a car accident in 1967 altered the course of his life, pushing him toward art full-time.
## Entering the Art World
After his accident, Eversley began experimenting with resin, creating transparent cylindrical sculptures from polyester resin. His interest in optics and light manipulation led him to design parabolic lenses — a defining feature of his decades-long artistic practice.
In 1969, Eversley moved into the Frank Gehry-designed studio of the late painter John Altoon. By 1970, his breakthrough moment arrived with a solo exhibition at the Whitney Museum of American Art, a rarity for a Black artist at the time. Additional shows followed at galleries such as OK Harris Gallery in New York and Phyllis Kind Gallery in Chicago.
Despite his significant contributions, Eversley’s scientific approach set him apart from his White contemporaries in the Light and Space Movement, preventing him from achieving the same fame. Similarly, his geometric and technical precision did not align with the expressive styles prominent in the Black Art Movement of the 1960s and ’70s.
## The Optical Marvels: Eversley’s Unique Sculptures
Eversley’s sculptures use resin, a material that allows light to pass through and manipulate reflections. The meticulously polished surfaces of his works act as lenses, bending and refracting light in dynamic and unexpected ways. His pieces reflect viewers and their surroundings, creating interactive experiences that challenge perception.
His work is featured in over 40 museum collections worldwide, including the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), and the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).
## A Late-Career Renaissance
Despite years of recognition within academic and museum circles, Eversley’s commercial and critical success accelerated in the last decade. In 2018, David Kordansky Gallery became his first official gallery representation. The Orange County Museum of Art opened its new building in 2022 with a retrospective of Eversley’s oeuvre, expanding on the 1976 solo exhibition the institution held for him decades prior.
His commission for the Public Art Fund in 2023 resulted in *Parabolic Light*, a monumental magenta resin sculpture installed in Central Park. One of his final major public works, *PORTALS*, an eight-piece steel cylinder installation, was unveiled in West Palm Beach in late 2023.
## A Legacy of Scientific Artistry
Eversley moved full-time to his Soho studio in New York in 2019 after being forced out of his long-time Venice Beach studio due to a lease dispute. His relentless dedication to his vision never waned.
“Eversley had a distinct clarity of vision that was unique and never wavered,” said curator Cassandra Coblentz, who organized the 2022 OCMA exhibition. “He explored the subtlest nuances that pushed his vision forward.”
Fred Eversley was a rare artist who seamlessly blended scientific inquiry with artistic innovation. His work continues to challenge perceptions, bending light and space while engaging viewers in an ever-shifting dialogue between materiality and immateriality. His contributions to contemporary art and the Light and Space Movement are immeasurable, and his influence will endure for years to come.