Elfriede M. Abbe was born in Washington DC in 1919 to an accomplished pianist and geologist. Attending Cornell College until 1940, she graduated from the College of Architecture, Department of Sculpture. From there she privately studied under Brenda Putnam in New York and Ivan Mestrovic at Syracuse University. "Wood is my principal medium", wrote Abbe, a technique she perfected with a Tiffany Fellowship in 1948, "I work entirely by hand, using only chisels, gouges and mallet, no electrical tools or abrasives." She is lauded for her ultimate respect for the medium of wood engraving.
Biographical Sources: American Artist, April 1960.
From the guide to the Elfriede M. Abbe Papers, 1950-1957, (University of Minnesota Libraries Children's Literature Research Collections)
