Visions of Light

Visions of Light is the first New York gallery solo exhibition of the acclaimed Greek sculptor Antonia Papatzanaki since her debut in 2000-2001 at Battery Park with the outdoor installation Agora.

 

This exhibit presents a sample of Papatzanaki's signature wall-reliefs representing her production during the last decade, and an installation of new Plexiglas works. Her works emit light, which is formed through rigid materials. A constant dialogue exists between the artificial light of the work and the ambient light of the surroundings. The works function as a conceptual manifestation connecting sculpture, architecture, and the experience of light.

 

Papatzanaki's wall sculptures are solid and geometric and simultaneously intangible and vivid. Structured geometrically within metallic rectangles, linear signs of light constitute a radiant form. Light surpassing the metal confines of the work, emphasizes the potentiality of transcendence from reality to the fleeting of human consciousness. Formally the work has two aspects; one linear- geometric and one natural- organic that depends on the angle of the viewer. Only the viewer's physical movement can bring the work's structure into unity, fully revealing its form.

 

An installation of new Plexiglas works is also exhibited in the Project Space. These are process derived works, initially drawn on thermo-active fax paper using various heating methods. They were then electronically processed by the artist and finally transferred onto Plexiglas using laser etching. The drawings imprint the traces of everyday objects surrounding the artist and/or the flow of the heated air. They function as a personal notebook. 

 

artist statement

"Any given material is possessed of qualities that provoke specific emotional responses and mental images. Directly connected to life and metaphorically to truth, since without light most life and vision do not exist, light is a heavily loaded universal symbol. The dual substance of light -mass and energy- corresponds to the duality of human nature as mind and body. Primordial light is the ultimate confine of our world. Light signals the rhythm of our life and, unfortunately, the passing of time."

bio

Antonia Papatzanaki, born in Chania, on the island of Crete in Greece, is currently (2007) living in New York City. Papatzanaki was educated in Athens, Vienna and acquired the MFA at Pratt Institute in New York City. She is the recipient of many awards and first prizes for public art work installations. Papatzanaki has exhibited her works in ten solo exhibitions, many group exhibitions in Europe and the United States. Public works by Antonia Papatzanaki are on permanent display throughout Greece. Works by Antonia Papatzanaki are in the Vorres Museum in Athens, the Contemporary Art Center of Rethymnon, in Crete, and numerous private collections.