Laurie Lea is a New York based visual artist exploring the integration of light and form through sculpture, blown glass, neon light, 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.
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 interaction of light and structure gives Lea a way of examining human existence in both the invisible dimension and in the dimension of observable phenomena.
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 such as "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.
Lea initiated and wrote the original Public Arts Ordinance for Atlanta, GA when serving on the city’s Fulton County Arts Council. She is a recipient of numerous awards, grants, and residencies which include the Georgia Arts Council Purchase Award, grants from The Brooklyn Arts Council, Artists Grants/ Artists Space, the New York Council on the Arts, Southern Arts, England and the Arts Council of Great Britain. Her work is included in major collections throughout the world including the MoMa Museum Archives in NYC, the Museum of Robins Center for Peace, Tel-Aviv, Israel, Walsall Museum & Art Gallery, Walsall, England, and the Georgia Arts Council State Art Collection, Atlanta, GA.
