Light Work will present “Sight Specific,” featuring the work of artist Letha Wilson, in the Kathleen O. Ellis Gallery at Light Work from March 17 through July 18.
Letha Wilson, “Utah Maine Concrete Slab,” 2013
Wilson will deliver a formal artist lecture on Tuesday, March 17, at 6:30 p.m. in Watson Auditorium in the Menschel Media Center, 316 Waverly Ave. This lecture is co-sponsored by the College of Visual and Performing Arts Visiting Artist Lecture Series. A reception and informal gallery talk will take place on Thursday, March 19, from 5-7 p.m. at Light Work. Refreshments will be served at the reception. All events are free and open to the public.
Wilson’s photographic, sculptural work begins as an exploration into our understanding of landscape. By alluding to conventions of romanticism and mythology, and expanding the possibilities of interpretation through abstraction, Wilson exposes the photograph’s inability to truly contain the place it represents. Her images of the American West—vast canyons, desert plants and sky—are formed into sculptural objects that utilize the physical space of the gallery. At times embedded into walls, floors and ceilings, even wrapping around (or through) architectural details, her inventive and playful approach to installation informs the tactile experience of her work. Wilson intervenes in the static image by folding, distorting and bending iconic landscapes into complex forms that elicit the sheer weight and beauty of the sublime. Wilson spent the month of February as an artist-in-residence at Light Work, where she made a selection of new works specifically for this gallery exhibition.
Wilson is a mixed media artist who was born in Honolulu, raised in Colorado and currently lives in Brooklyn. Her outdoor excursions among the Rocky Mountains have placed the natural world and its photographic image at the root of her artistic interests. She earned her B.F.A. from Syracuse University and an M.F.A. from Hunter College in New York City.
Wilson’s artwork has been shown at many venues, including the Bronx Museum of the Arts, Socrates Sculpture Park, Exit Art, White Box, Platform Gallery, Fredrieke Taylor Gallery, BravinLee Programs, Partipant Inc., the Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art, Vox Populi and Higher Pictures. In 2009, Wilson was a resident at the Santa Fe Art Institute and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture and was nominated for the Louis Comfort Tiffany Award.
