Louise Bourgeois (b.1911 - d.2010, French-American) was a pioneering French-American artist whose work spanned sculpture, installation, painting, and printmaking. Born in Paris, Bourgeois studied at esteemed institutions including the Sorbonne, the Académie de la Grande Chaumière, the École du Louvre, and the École des Beaux-Arts before relocating to New York in the late 1940s with her husband, the art historian Robert Goldwater.

Bourgeois’ deeply personal and psychological work is often associated with the Confessional Art movement, which she helped define. Prints and works on paper provided Bourgeois with a crucial medium for exploring themes of memory, identity, sexuality, and trauma—recurring motifs throughout her long career. Bourgeois often experimented with techniques such as etching, aquatint, and lithography, pushing the boundaries of traditional printmaking.

Despite Bourgeois’ early contributions to modern and contemporary art, widespread recognition came later in her career. In 1981, the Museum of Modern Art, New York, held a retrospective of her work, and in 1993, Bourgeois represented the United States at the Venice Biennale. Tate Modern honoured her with a major retrospective in 2007, reinforcing her status as one of the most influential artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. Bourgeois was awarded France’s highest honour, the Legion of Honour, in 1998. Her legacy endures through her raw, introspective approach to form and material, which continues to resonate with contemporary audiences and artists alike.

https://www.artsy.net/artwork/louise-bourgeois-i-have-been-to-hell-and-back-handkerchief-red)

This long sold out coveted limited edition embroidered handkerchief is based on a larger original, which Bourgeois created in 1996. Created on the occasion of Bourgeois' 2007-08 exhibition at the Tate Modern, London, it was offered at the Tate Gift shop

and sold out shortly after. Produced by Third Drawer Down, Australia, in collaboration with the artist Louise Bourgeois' embroidered handkerchief was created in three variations, blue, red and pink - the present work being the colour pink with all of its connotations. What makes this work especially collectible is that the design was created and authorised during the artist's lifetime in direct collaboration with her. It bears Bourgeois' iconic and memorable phrase, "I Have Been to Hell and Back and Let Me Tell You It Was Wonderful." This work is in unusually impressive condition with the original bright hues preserved and not washed or faded, unlike many that have come to market. It is elegantly floated and framed in a wood frame. The work ia accompanied by the origin edition envelope in mint condition The work itself has the artist's silkscreened initials, and it is hand numbered from the limited edition of only 1000