Construction Mechanic Noah Purifoy, A Sailor's Story
Construction Mechanic Noah Purifoy, A Sailor's Story
Construction Mechanic Noah Purifoy was born on August 17, 1917, in Snow Hill, Alabama. He grew up in Birmingham and pursued higher education at Alabama State Teachers College, graduating in 1939 with a degree in social science. Before the war, he worked as an educator, teaching woodshop at Tuscaloosa High School.
In response to World War II, Purifoy enlisted in the United States Navy and completed Seabee training as a Construction Mechanic. Deployed to the Pacific Theater, he served throughout the war as part of the Navy’s construction battalions, units responsible for building airfields, roads, and facilities under combat conditions. The Seabees’ work required both technical skill and resilience, often carried out close to the front lines.
After the war, Purifoy returned to civilian life, determined to continue working in service-oriented fields. In 1946, he enrolled at Atlanta University and earned a degree in Social Work in 1948. Two years later, he relocated to Los Angeles, California, where he continued combining community engagement with creative work.
Purifoy graduated from the Chouinard Art Institute in 1954 with a bachelor’s degree and began a career in fine art and sculpture. His work took on new urgency following the 1965 Watts Rebellion, a six-day uprising that resulted in 34 deaths and the destruction of more than 1,000 buildings. Deeply affected by the event, Purifoy began creating large-scale mixed-media sculptures using debris salvaged from the neighborhood. These works transformed the physical remnants of violence and loss into acts of witness and renewal.
His exhibition 66 Signs of Neon helped launch what became known as the “Junk Dada” movement, redefining found-object art and positioning Purifoy as a leading figure in postwar American assemblage.
In 1964, Purifoy co-founded the Watts Towers Arts Center, establishing long-term community arts programming for Black residents of Watts. From 1976 to 1989, he served on the California Arts Council, where he designed and supported new public and community-based art initiatives across the state.
After retiring from public service in 1989, Purifoy moved to Joshua Tree, California, where he established the Noah Purifoy Outdoor Desert Art Museum, a sprawling, open-air installation that continues to draw visitors and scholars. The museum remains active today through the work of the Noah Purifoy Foundation.
Construction Mechanic Noah Purifoy died on March 5, 2004. He is buried at the Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery in Rittman, Ohio.
His life reflects a rare continuity of service: from wartime construction under fire to rebuilding communities through art, education, and public engagement. The tools changed, but the purpose did not.
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About the Author
a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller traveling through life
She shares her journeys at Take the Back Roads, explores new reads at Rite of Fancy, and highlights U.S. military biographies at Everyday Patriot.
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