Description
Liz Liguori: Light of Hand is the eponymous art book being released to mark the artist’s solo show at La Mama Galleria in New York City from March 4-April 16, 2022.
The exhibit is curated by Elæ Moss, who also produced and provided text on this innovative artist’s electromagnetogram process, framed in the show as part of Liguori’s profoundly moving relationship with light, sound, and the human experience, which we’re allowed an even more intimate invitation into through the pages of this volume.
Light of Hand traces the evolution of the artist’s exploration of light in space through the electromagnetogram, focusing on new experimental darkroom procedures. Employing a strategy borne out of Liguori’s background creating immersive light experiences in New York City nightclubs, these unique images seek to harness and make visible the transformative, meditative power of light and sound the artist learned to manipulate in those spaces. The body of work curated for this show, with its giant shifts in scale, highlights the painterly capacities of light refraction and optical amplification, of water, and of sound frequency, showcasing the depth and tonal possibilities achieved through experimentation with photo chemistry and paper. In addition to presenting recent prints, Light of Hand includes a documentary short on Liguori’s studio process, and an immersive “darkroom,” where visitors can experience the light and sound manipulations used to create electromagnetograms.
Technical Note: The “Electromagnetogram” is an invented process of painting with light and chemicals developed by artist Liz Liguori. This exploration of the black and white photo process captures the ephemeral movement of light through space without the use of a camera. At its most simple, a single frequency, or “pure” wavelength of light is used to expose a piece of light-sensitive photo paper. This now decade long experiment began in 2011 as a collaboration with Jessie and Sally Mann for The Mountain Lake Workshop; developing the process further has been Liguori’s focus ever since, with iterative development continuously since 2018.
LIZ LIGUORI (b. 1979) is an artist creating photographic, sculptural, and time-based work at the intersection of science and light. With process and experimentation as her touchstones, Liguori’s work blends high and low technology to realize the subtle qualities discovered in their communication. Her works range from interactive light installations to explorations of everyday objects which are dismantled, repurposed, and refashioned to propose a new form or perspective. The work invites an experiential exchange where the viewer can meditate upon form, function, and chance. Liguori has had solo shows in New York at Lazy Susan Gallery, and 222 Bowery Art, and shown at museums and galleries across the country.
