ARTISTS STATEMENT

My work is about the relationship between light and form: how they affect each other primarily in visual, psychological and symbolic ways. The light comes from artificial sources and represents not only the invisible reality underlying appearance, but also the spiritual dimension which gives life meaning. The forms originated with a single human form evolved over time into simple geometric shapes of circles and rectangles representing the human condition.This interaction of light and structure gives me a way of examining human existence both in the invisible dimension and the physical dimension of observable phenomena. I use fractured and translucent materials covering but not obscuring light, to refer to states of fragility, fragmentation, transformation and redemption.

PROCESS

Sculpture is my foundational media: all my work begins as a spatial concept. My central vision of the light and form dynamic determines concepts, materials, forms, and methods. Each body of work within this vision starts with an idea. Sometimes that idea is a visual idea like a window inside a window, or a light within a transparent form. That choice determines the materials, type of lighting and subsequently all the formal elements for that work. Some sculpture involves so many time and labor intensive processes such and mold making and casting, that a body of work can take take years to produce. THis eventually creates a need in me to be more dynamic and fluid, so I periodically turn from working in three dimensions to translating that idea into two dimensions for a season before returning to sculpture.

Two predominant bodies of work which illustrate this way of working are CITY ON A HILL and SACRED LIGHT. In CITY ON A HILL i placed a light within a translucent form, transforming the interior void into a sacred space, referring to a specific relationship between God and man.. I then placed these luminous forms in a larger context of sky, sea and space to document at dusk the complex and changing relationships of interior and exterior light which occur as field reversals blur the boundaries between forms, land, water, and sky. This moment when the material world intersects the spiritual world has always fascinated me, as this fleeting phenomena suggests other dimensions which exist parallel to the visible world. After documenting this installation, I brought the cast glass forms back to my studio, blew into the original molds, and built bases for most of these forms so they can exist permanently in interior spaces. Once again i placed a light within a translucent form, transforming the interior void into a sacred space and balancing the inner, artificial light with the existing, ambient light of an interior space.

The process which I use for two dimensional work starts off in the same way: the concept directs the the choice of formal elements ( line, texture , color etc), the materials, type of lighting, and methods. The first body of two dimensional work which came out of the CITY ON A HILL series was entitled UNIVERSE. The void suggests to me a sphere, and the idea of round brings to mind quarks, atoms, and planets. Having spent years thinking about inner space, whether psychological ,visual, or symbolic, I was drawn to the idea of outer space. After choosing the specific idea, deciding on the formal elements, and collecting materials , I take a week or so to brainstorm, cutting loose from rational thinking and turning to the intuitive, fun side of the mind. At this stage i work fast, which results in a lot of work. Then I step back, examine the work and listen to it- sometimes it directs me in a way that I might not have "thought" of, or to more specificity of concept or execution. I choose only the work that corresponds to the predetermined structure, lay the rest aside, and continue working on those selected piece through to completion. I consider myself a reductive thinker. I make a lot of work and then edit it severely. But that volume of work comes out of a conceptual process. The final step in my overall process is writing about each body of work. This discipline forces me deeper into what its about and flows inevitably into the next work.. I realize many artists have similar ways of thinking and working - its like entering into a deeply cut river moving so rapidly that the force of it carries you along. The determined structure forms the sides of the canyon and the creative part becomes the moving river.

This procedure helps create a unity of idea, images, materials and methods. In the two dimensional "poured works", every element is chosen for its capacity to reflect light and affect form. I use a wide variety of materials chosen primarily for texture and light conductive properties such as metallic oxides, interference pigments, and ground glass and minerals. The surface I work on, polycarbonate or vellum, looks like a translucent, frosted pebbled glass and allows light to penetrate. Sometimes i layer these surfaces, sometimes I flip them over if the reverse side is more interesting. I separate the finished work from the wall by attaching clear plexi cubes to the back of the work, so that natural light passing through translucent layers increases the perception of depth and creates a sense of floating in space. My methods are sculptural rather than painterly, involving the use of chemical processes, gravity and temperature. A sensuous experience of materials is counterbalanced by a sense of luminosity and space.

THE LANGUAGE OF LIGHT

In the media of Sculpture, Installation and Poured Works I am developing a language of light. My central vision of the light-form dynamic determines concept, materials, forms and methods which I integrate with artificial lighting. Materials and media for Poured Works chosen primarily for texture and light conductive properties include: dichroic, iridescent and metallic oxides; interference & opalescent pigments; holographic paint spray; ground glass and minerals; phosphorus and fluorescent sprays. The surface is a frosted, pebbly, translucent polycarbonate called Bristol vellum. These materials and surfaces interact with light in myriad ways, creating a spectrum of colors, tones, values, textures, and shapes dependent on the contravention of light frequencies (metaphysically) comparable to language formation consisting of letters, word, sentences and structure. In using non pictorial visual language, I employ thermodynamics within the creative process: for example, painters generally use absorption pigments, which absorb the entire spectrum of light except the color that is seen. The interference, iridescent and metallic pigments I use are based in refraction and reflection of specific wavelengths of light , rather than the chemical and molecular structures that traditional pigments are based on. Because each color is a different wave length, interference pigments are more visually dynamic depending on the angle of observation and direction of illumination. Looking from one side, a work appears one color, but from another side it appears another color, giving the appearance of greater three dimensional form.

CV

Laurie Lea is a New York based artist exploring the integration of light and form through the media of sculpture, installation and poured works. She is developing a language of light for both her two dimensional poured works and luminous forms she places on the coast of different countries or hangs in interior spaces.

Growing up in the South, Lea worked from a live model for over 20 years. At the University of Colorado in Boulder, Co, the first "light" that went on for her was in Life Drawing Class. Over time her single forms evolved into simple geometric shapes of circles and rectangles representing the human condition. Moving back to her home town of Atlanta after receiving a BFA from the University of Colorado, Lea exhibited nationally and internationally in numerous shows, a few of which were:

• "Art on Paper", Weatherspoon Gallery, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
• "American Drawings, 1976", curated by the Smithsonian Arts Institute, Portsmouth, VA, catalogue
• "The Great Garden Sculpture Show", Sculptural Arts Museum, Atlanta, GA, catalogue
• "USA Portrait of the South", Palazzo Venezia, Rome, Italy, catalogue
• "Ut Och In", Malmo Kuntshall, Malmo, Sweden; Fay Gold Gallery, Atlanta, GA, catalogue
• "Drawing 1989". Brigham Young University Arts Gallery, Provo, UT, catalogue
• "At the Edge", Laguna Gloria Art Museum, Austin, TX
• "Invitational Exhibition", High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA

She was funded for a traveling exhibition throughout the South, showing in the Macon Museum of Arts & Science, The Albany Museum of Art and Birmingham Museum of Art. With a few artist friends she opened and ran Gallery 18 for many years in Atlanta. She won numerous awards including the Purchase Award for the Georgia Arts Council; Juror's Choice Award and Touring Citation for the "Art at the Edge" exhibition mentioned above; 1st Place, Heritage Award, Georgia Commission for the National Bicentennial Celebration; and !st Place, 6th Annual Exhibition, Southern Watercolor Show, Pensacola Museum of art, Pensacola, FL. For several years she served on the Fulton County Arts Council of Atlanta, GA, initiating and helping create the Per Cent for the Arts Ordinance for Atlanta. She co-created the Georgia Artists International Fund which sponsored Artists' Travel Grants and organized international exhibitions for Georgia artists as well as reciprocal exhibitions for European artists in the USA.

The year Lea left for NYC, 1989, the second "light" occurred when a gift of a neon squiggle she "plopped" on a sculpture converged with her interest in science and the nature of reality. This seemingly random act ignited a life long passion to explore the intersection of the invisible, intangible dimension of quantum physics with the physical, visible dimension of observable phenomena. Light represented God and the invisible dimension, and material form represented mankind and the physical dimension. The possibilities spinning off this simple dynamic seem limitless:

• the aesthetics of light interacting with form led to developing a language of light
• the symbolism of light in a dark and disjointed world filled with wars, disease, poverty is relevant and hope filled
• the science of light- the Quantum Era began with studies concerning light and led to the discovery of multiple dimensions of reality, and to the significance and predominance of the unseen realm over the seen
• the history of light from artists' fascination with light through the ages to the connection of Lea's art to Medieval art, "a non-pictorial visualization of spiritual perception" - The Art of Being by Dr. James Romaine (see Catalogue, SACRED LIGHT, p.13, under WORDS at www.laurielea.com)

As Lea began her lifelong pursuit of this light-form dynamic in NYC, she received funding for public installations from the Brooklyn Arts Council, Artists Grants/Artists Space, and the New York State Council on the Arts. International awards and residencies included:

• Southern Arts, England
• The Arts Council of Great Britain Exchange Fellowship Residency
• Artist Residency at the Russell- Cotes Museum, Bournemouth, England
• MacDowell Colony Fellowship, Peterborough, NH
• Professional Artist in Residency, Pilchuck School of Glass, Seattle, WA
• Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Amherst, VA
• Chashama Studio Residency, NYC
• Artist in Residence, Holland Tunnel Paros, Paros, Greece
• Artist in Residence, YWCA Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY

From 2003 - 2008 Lea's work was included in several international exhibitions dealing with the theme of peace:

• "9/11 Exhibition" traveled in the Northeast United States
• "Milestones for Peace" traveled through the Middle East, Eastern Europe and Europe (venues included the Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy)
• "Christmas in Peace", Sato Museum, Tokyo, Japan
• "Senderos Mexicanos", Regional Museum of Michoacano, Morelia, Mexico

One person exhibitions during her years in NYC:

• Sotheby's International Realty Gallery, curated by The Bascom Center, Highlands, NC
• The Bascom Art Center, Highlands, NC
• "Shadow of Turning", Holland Tunnel Paros Gallery, Paros, Greece
• "SACRED LIGHT: GOLDWORKS", Space 38/39, New York, NY
• Teoh Art Space, Tigali, Rwanda
• "CITY ON A HILL", Sculpture Installation, Chashama, New York, NY
• "Beginnings", Tompkins College Center Gallery, Cedar Crest College, Allentown, PA, catalogue
• "Light-Worlds", commissioned Sculpture Installation, Walsall Museum, Walsall, England
• "Headlights", Russell-Cotes Museum, Bournemouth, England, catalogue
• Artist Resident Exhibition, Artspace, Sponsored by Southern Arts, Portsmouth, England
• "Vessels of the Spirit", Dolgenos, Newnan & Cronin Exhibition Space, New York, NY
• "Immanent Light/Emanent Form", A.I R. Gallery, New York, NY

During her NYC years, awards and honors have included the Adolph & Esther Gottlieb Foundation Individual Artist Support Grant, NYC. She was invited to be a keynote speaker and to present her work in an international Symposium on Art and Light at the University of the Creative Arts in Farnham, Surry, England. For over 10 years she served on the Board of the Eyes of Hope Project which focuses on photography projects for children in third world countries. She continues to exhibit nationally and internationally in numerous group shows. including the International Sculpture Center. She was recently awarded a grant from Be Still Media Foundation. Her work can be seen at Details Gallery in Prince Edward Island, Canada, the Waterfall Mansion Gallery, New York, NY and the YWCA Brooklyn, Brooklyn, NY. Some major collections featuring her work include the MOMA Archives, NYC, The Museum of Robins Center for Peace, Tel-Aviv, Israel, The Walsall Museum, Walsall, England, the Russell- Cotes Museum, Bournemouth, England, and the Georgia Art Council State Art Collection. Her art is included in Rudi Sterne's, CONTEMPORARY NEON, the WHO's WHO IN AMERICAN ART, WHO'S WHO IN THE SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST and the WORLD WHO'S WHO OF WOMEN. She currently lives and works in Brooklyn, NY.

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