I was just sent these news articles by a friend in the UK, and I was both impressed and unsettled by the artist's work. It's pretty incredible, though, and the first time that I'm aware of a bead artist receiving this level of attention or being taken this seriously by the art community at large. Maybe many of you are already familiar with the work of Liza Lou, but I wasn't and am glad to be aquainted with it now:
I saw an installation of her work at the art museum in Akron, Ohio about 5 years ago. It did not surprise me that she had serious injuries to both wrists as a result of her efforts. All of the disturbing bits about her life before art are news to me. Disturbing is right.
Georgia
You do come away feeling disturbed and unsettled. Sounds like her childhood was awful. I wonder if she will come here to the gilcrease museum? I will have to stay on the lookout for her. Cyndi
wow. I'd love to see more of her work. It does seem awfully disturbing, and her childhood..geez. talk about a waking nightmare.
-Amber.
Dont' know whether that qualifies as a a wow or an OMG!
I've seen Kitchen and her other (what I considered somewhat "Warhol" inspired - i.e. ordinary objects covered in beads) work. ... but this stuff is different - born of primal pain... never, ever would I have known about that if she had not taken it from her internal life to her art... shocking - but certainly an artistic statement that stops people in their tracks...
Cheryl
Kalera wrote:
Thanks for the links Kalera!
In September 2002 Liza Lou received a MacArthur Fellowship Grant which is $500,000 over 5 years and is meant to allow artists to create "no strings attached".
It's interesting to see where she's gone with her art. Could you imagine? You could do anything. I often wonder what I would do artistically if I didn't have to worry about selling it.
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