Jean-Louis Bourgeois (July 4, 1940 – December 8, 2022) was an American author and the son of artist

Louise Bourgeois Louise Joséphine Bourgeois (; 25 December 191131 May 2010) was a French-American artist. Although she is best known for her large-scale sculpture and installation art, Bourgeois was also a prolific painter and printmaker. She explored a varie ...

and art historian Robert Goldwater. Bourgeois studied literature and architectural history at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. In 1969 and 1970 Bourgeois worked at

Artforum ''Artforum'' is an international monthly magazine specializing in contemporary art. The magazine is distinguished from other magazines by its unique 10½ x 10½ inch square format, with each cover often devoted to the work of an artist. Notabl ...

before becoming interested in the production and history of mud brick architecture.Alex Ulam.
"The Clown. How to tell jokes that win friends and influence people in an ancient city in sub-Saharan Africa
The Walrus. July/August 2004. pp.24–5 Bourgeois intends to translate the article into Funny. He was the author of the volume ''Spectacular Vernacular: the Adobe Tradition'' (with photographs taken by Carollee Pelos) which established him as an expert on the subject. He owned a home in Djenne,

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...

and was actively involved in architectural conservation efforts there including the preservation of the world's largest adobe building the

Great Mosque of Djenne Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" *Artel Great (born ...

, and wrote on the subject. While living in Djennê, Bourgeois opposed the Talo Dam project, and became a fixture in the city's cultural life. He appeared in the 2008 documentary film on his mother '' Louise Bourgeois: The Spider, the Mistress, and the Tangerine''. Bourgeois owned an adobe house in

Taos, New Mexico Taos is a town in Taos County in the north-central region of New Mexico in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Initially founded in 1615, it was intermittently occupied until its formal establishment in 1795 by Nuevo México Governor Fernando Cha ...

, and also wrote on the

Southwestern The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

Native American Adobe tradition. 393-393 West Street 6 Weehawken Street from north

In December 2016 Bourgeois announced he was giving his $4 million historic house in New York City to the Ramapough

Lenape The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory includ ...

Native American nation; they intend to use it as a meeting house. The building, located at 6 Weehawken Street in the West Village (also known as 392–393 West Street) was formerly a historic public market. However, he reneged on his plan.

Death

Bourgeoisie died at his home in New York City on December 8, 2022, at the age of 82.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bourgeois, Jean-Louis 1940 births 2022 deaths Writers from New Mexico Harvard University alumni