COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY RECORD  September 10, 1993  Vol. 19 No. 2

                    JOAN SOVERN, SCULPTOR, DIES AT 57

      Joan R. Sovern, the New York sculptor, died Tuesday at her home in 
      Manhattan. She was 57 years old.

      She had been battling cancer since 1979, according to her husband, 
      Michael I. Sovern, former president of Columbia. His wish to spend 
      more time with her was the reason Mr. Sovern recently retired as 
      president.

      Mrs. Sovern's sculpture evolved in size and form from large works 
      in bronze and marble in the 1950s, 60s and 70s to smaller 
      landscapes of stone and Plexiglas recently. Her sculpture was the 
      subject of a solo exhibition in 1988 at the Norah Haime Gallery in 
      New York and of an accompanying book, "A Grace of Sense: The 
      Sculpture of Joan Sovern," with photographs by David Finn and text 
      by Dena Merriam. An exhibition of her later sculpture was 
      presented by the Kouros Gallery in 1991 with photographic 
      interpretations of her art by Mr. Finn. The exhibition inspired 
      the publication of a second book, an illustrated edition of the 
      long poem Vale Ave by the American poet Hilda Doolittle (H.D.). 
      Both books were published by Black Swan Press.

      "The New York Times" in 1988 noted that Mrs. Sovern's evolution 
      from an artist creating "large works with soft, sensual curves, in 
      bronze, terra cotta and marble" to one whose works were "angular, 
      stark and markedly different" assemblages of stones, slate and 
      driftwood reflected the physical limitations imposed by her 
      debilitating illness.

      Merriam wrote in "A Grace of Sense": "Her goal was never to invent 
      a new sculptural vocabulary but rather to translate into a three-
      dimensional reality the essence of her own spirit. What emerges is 
      a lovely stillness, a joy in the fact of life, an openness to the 
      grace that can be achieved through the experience of our senses."

      During her long fight with cancer, Mrs. Sovern, through example 
      and by speaking openly, inspired courage in others to confront the 
      disease.

      Born Oct. 15, 1935, Mrs. Sovern, the daughter of John and Edna 
      Rosenthal, was a lifelong New Yorker. Introduced to the arts at an 
      early age, she studied dance with a former student of Isadora 
      Duncan but soon became drawn to the visual arts. At Bennington 
      College, where she was an art major and a student of sculptor 
      Simon Moselsio, she did her first major work, a bronze sculpture 
      marking the untimely death of her mother at age 40. After 
      graduation, she returned to New York, studying at the Art Students 
      League with William Zorach and John Hovannes. She also taught 
      sculpture at the Jewish Guild for the Blind.

      She exhibited in group shows, winning first prize in the New 
      England Art Association Annual Exhibit and the Wall Street Art 
      Association Annual Exhibit. Her work was included in exhibitions 
      at Creative Woman, Margo Feiden Gallery, Benson Gallery, American 
      Standard Gallery Show-Stone Sculpture Society of New York, and at 
      the United States Embassy in Rome. Her sculpture is in many 
      private collections.

      An active participant in University life, Mrs. Sovern earned the 
      appreciation of the Columbia Trustees, who said in a 1984 
      resolution: "We the Trustees of Columbia University, keenly aware 
      of the significant role you so successfully performed to the 
      benefit of the University, take pride in expressing to you our 
      deep gratitude, admiration and affection... The creative intellect 
      and energy that you bring to your work in the arts, child welfare 
      and the pursuit of educational excellence displayed the discerning 
      sensitivity of an accomplished artist and the integrity and 
      understanding of a good and wise friend."

      Mrs. Sovern was instrumental in bringing about the creation of the 
      Henry Moore Sculpture Reserve at Columbia's Harriman, N.Y., campus 
      and in organizing an exhibition of four large Moore works on the 
      Morningside Heights campus in 1983 to announce its establishment.

      Mrs. Sovern had been a member of the Jewish Board of Family and 
      Children's Services and Columbia's Art History Advisory Council.

      Her marriage to Harold Wit in 1960 ended in divorce in 1970. She 
      married Mr. Sovern in 1974.

      In addition to her husband, she is survived by a brother, Edward 
      Rosenthal of Croton-on-Hudson, N.Y.; a daughter, Hannah Wit of 
      Oakland, Calif.; a son, David Wit of New York City; two 
      stepdaughters, Julie Sovern of New York City and Elizabeth Sovern 
      of Mount Kisco, N.Y.; two stepsons, Jeffrey Sovern of New York 
      City and Douglas Sovern of Oakland, and four grandchildren.

      The funeral will be private. A memorial service will be held in 
      St. Paul's Chapel at 4:00 P.M. Mon., Sept. 13. Mr. Sovern and the 
      family will receive friends beginning at 2:00 P.M. in the Faculty 
      Room of Low Memorial Library.