Liz West - Coming up this Spring

Through No. 3, 2015. Photo credit: Adam Pester Photography

Spring is coming... 

I have been overwhelmed with your kind responses to my first public art commission Through No. 3. Originally destined to only be shown for 6 weeks over the Christmas period, the work is on view indefinitely in Spinningfields, Manchester. If you are in Manchester over the next few months, be sure to track it down, especially if it is a rare sunny day! 

I am delighted to have recently been shortlisted for this years Aesthetica Art Prize and will be exhibiting work in the Art Prize exhibition Opening on 13 April at York St. Mary's. Having been chosen to receive one of the RBS Bursary Awards, I will be showing brand new work in the Royal British Society of Sculptors Bursary group exhibition, previewing on 16 March. Also, I am honoured to have my work presented in a new Thames & Hudson publication 'Lumitecture: Illuminating Interiors For Designers & Architects' by Anna Yudina, which is out now. 

Over the Spring months there will be several opportunities to see and experience my work. Below I have listed some upcoming opportunities that you may be interested in. You can find more information about my work by visiting www.liz-west.com.

New Site-Specific Installation



Liz will be artist-in-residence and unveiling a brand new installation at Light + Building in Frankfurt on 14th and 15th March.

Complementary Saturation is a new site-specific spatial installation exploring the relationship between complementary colours and on the people experiencing them. The work has been commissioned by the International Association of Lighting Designers and sponsored by Lumenpulse.

Liz will be giving a free artist talk as part of the IALD's Lighting Perspectives seminar at 10.45am on 14th March. Click HERE for more information.












 

Upcoming Group Exhibition

Liz will be showing new works in the Royal British Society of Sculptors (RBS) Bursary exhibition. Each year the RBS Bursary Awards are given to 10 early career artists working in 3 dimensions judged to be of outstanding talent. Integral to the society’s aim to promote the diverse language of contemporary sculpture, the Bursary Awards provide a platform to emerging sculptors to realise their full potential in the professional sphere.  

Preview: 16 March 2016, 6.30 - 8.30pm. Open from 17 March - 20 May 2016, Wednesday - Friday 12.30 - 5.30pm (or by appointment).


 

Shortlisted for Art Prize

Liz has been shortlisted for this years Aesthetica Art Prize and exhibition. Showcasing cutting-edge practice from today’s ground-breaking contemporary artists.

Celebrating individual mediums whilst recognising the richness of interdisciplinary practice, the 2016 selection is distributed across the categories of Photographic and Digital Art; Painting and Drawing; Three Dimensional Design and Sculpture, and Video, Installation and Performance. Open from 14 April - 31 May 2016 at York St. Mary's.




Work in New Publication

Liz has work presented in the new Thames & Hudson publication Lumitecture: Illuminating Interiors for Designers and Architects which was released on 29 February. Author Anna Yudina not only pursues the question, "What is light?" but also offers insight on 200 projects that demonstrate its transformative power.

Yudina has organised the book around three sections. First, there's light as it transforms space. Second, Yudina addresses lighting that alters one's perception of time. Finally, the author taps into light's power over emotion. Within each section, sub-categories like "color power" and materialization, daylight and contrast, all factor in. The work is comprehensive and up-to-date but its most powerful attribute is the revelation of light's true potential.







Commission Awarded

Take A Part CIC, Stonehouse Action and Stonehouse community members are thrilled to announce that artist Liz West has been commissioned to develop a new exciting public artwork to respond to the diversity and heritage in Stonehouse, Plymouth.
Liz West was selected via a co-commissioning process with Take A Part CIC, Stonehouse Action and Stonehouse Action’s community members leading to a co-written artist brief which outlined the aims of a commissioned public artwork - the need for humour, warmth, playfulness, spectacle and permanence. Out of numerous applications from the UK and Europe, Stonehouse Action members selected the artist Liz West."

Take A Part CIC Director Kim Wide says, ‘We are thrilled to have Liz working with us on this project which will be vibrant and reflective of the area’s past and future.’ The commission will be completed by June 2016.







 

Exhibition Announcement

Liz West has been awarded Arts Council England Grants for the Arts funding towards a forthcoming major solo exhibition Our Colour Reflection at 20-21 Visual Arts Centre in Scunthorpe, opening in May 2016.  

For Our Colour Reflection Liz will present an ambitious new installation using hundreds of coloured mirrors to transform the Neo-Gothic interior of the former St John’s Church building. The work will both reflect viewers as they look  at the work, and send colour up into the roof-space of the historic building – creating a dialogue between viewer, artwork and architecture. Exact dates and more information to follow shortly.


In the Press
Liz's work has recently been featured in several international publications and online editorial. Here are links to a few articles that have featured work which you might be interested in reading:

Mondo*Arc Magazine p.35-36
Total Lighting Magazine p. 20-21
ATTITUDE Interior Design Magazine
Architectural Lighting Magazine
The Creators Project
FRAME Magazine
Young Artists in Conversation (YAC)  

Liz West shortlisted for 2016 Aesthetica Art Prize, Exhibition and Book

The Aesthetica Art Prize shortlist and longlist have been announced, featuring 100 contemporary artists from around the world. The shortlist includes 10 artists whose work will be exhibited in York from 14 April to 29 May at York St Mary’s – York Art Gallery‘s contemporary art space. The exhibition celebrates excellence in contemporary art, spanning photography, painting, drawing, installation, sculpture, artists’ film and performance.

Alongside the exhibited works, there will also be a series of free lunchtime talks led by key figures in the art world, including artists and curators. These talks will enable audiences to further their engagement with the exhibition, and explore best practice across a range of disciplines. Industry professionals will also provide a unique insight into the creative sector from both organisational and individual perspectives.

Shortlisted artists include Ellie Davies, whose submission Between the Trees 14, 2014, was included in The Royal Academy of Arts 2015 Summer Exhibition in London, and Manchester-based emerging artist Liz West, recipient of an RBS Bursary Award 2015, Royal British Society of Sculptors, London.

Andrea Luka Zimmerman, recently shortlisted for Film London’s Jarman Award was also selected for the Aesthetica Art Prize exhibition, along with Henry Driver, who has exhibited at Tate Britain and Tate Liverpool, as well as across the UK. Other finalists include Adriana Salazar, David Hochgatterer, Gabriela Torres Ruiz, James Winter, Jennifer López Ayala and Rachel Ara.

A further 90 artists are featured in the longlist. Their work will be published alongside the shortlisted pieces in the Aesthetica Art Prize Annual, a publication that accompanies the exhibition in spring. Showcasing cutting-edge practice from today’s pioneering artists, this book is an inspiring collection that encourages an awareness of the innovative work being produced around the world today.

The longlisted artists’ works will also be displayed on a monitor in the gallery, enabling the audiences to explore the diversity of work included in the Prize. The longlisted and shortlisted pieces connect with issues relevant in today’s society and contemplate topics such as the environment, urbanisation, technology, loss of the individual and globalisation. The Prize also highlights work that challenges its own genre and provokes debate around its form and function.

See the full shortlist and longlist here.

The Aesthetica Art Prize is currently open for the 2017 exhibition. To enter, and for submission guidelines, visit www.aestheticamagazine.com/art-prize