Noah Purifoy

Purifoy was the first African American to enroll in Chouinard Art Institute as a full-time student and earned his BFA in 1956, just before his fortieth birthday.

He is best known for his assemblage sculpture, including a body of work made from charred debris and wreckage collected after the Watts Riots of August 1965.

Following graduation Noah took a position as a social worker in Cleveland and in 1950 he moved to Los Angeles taking a job at the County Hospital.

[9] While giving the appearance of a salvage yard with tires, bathroom fixtures, TVs, ragged clothes, toys and vacuum cleaners, each piece has a story to tell.

[12] Purifoy's work has been included in group exhibitions including Pacific Standard Time: Crosscurrents in L.A. Painting and Sculpture, 1950–1970 (October 2011 – February 2012), Getty Center, Los Angeles,[13] traveled to Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, Germany (March – June 2012); Now Dig This!