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Louise Nevelson's 1963 Tamarind fellowship occurred at a time of personal crisis. Her decision to jump galleries—after several financially successful exhibitions in the late 1950s and early 1960s—backfired when her first showing at Sidney Janis Gallery in New York failed to produce sales sufficient to cover the gallery advance she had received to prepare the show. Nevelson was forced to sell her house while paying legal fees to extricate herself from the new relationship with Janis. This combination of events left her financially and emotionally defeated.

Arriving in Los Angeles in late April, Nevelson was soon rejuvenated by the sunny climate and the atmosphere in the workshop. As she has reflected: "I wouldn't ordinarily have gone. I didn't care so much about the idea of prints at that time, but I desperately needed to get out of town and all my expenses were paid." During May and June, she completed twenty-six editions of lithographs, using direct and often unorthodox methods. Among her glossary of techniques was the pressing of inked objects like erasers, lace, and other textured materials onto the stones and plates. Nevelson also made textures on transfer paper—a special paper used in lithography to create indirect images—and cut and transferred them to stone in a collage-like manner.

No one had produced as many prints in six weeks of residency as had Nevelson. The published prints were well received, and the experience gave Nevelson renewed confidence.