Mary Lucier, Untitled (Spirit Lake)
Statement
My artistic practice has focused primarily on multiple-channel, mixed media installations since the early 1970s. Over the years I have constructed numerous rooms, houses, and hybrid structures made up of found and fabricated objects, animated by video and sound. I have traveled in various geographic locales where I examined both natural phenomena and the changes wrought by human intervention in the environment and the population. Recently I have been privileged to work with cultures other than my own, while also having the opportunity to revisit and revise older work that collages past and present, dream world and reality, in both image and sound. I remain committed to the exploration of the camera into cultural and ecological sites.
| Artwork Info | |
|---|---|
| Date | 2017/2021 |
| Dimensions | Runtime: 10:30 min; 1920 x 1080 resolution; 16 x 9 screen ratio |
| Medium | Video |
| Artist Info | |
|---|---|
| Born | Bucyrus, OH |
| Works | New York and Cochecton, NY |
Reflecting on this Year
Untitled (Spirit Lake) is about the one in many. The one being the dancer whom the camera is focused on at any one moment; the many being the tribe and entire group of participants. The Pow Wow (which was recorded in 2015) is both a communal experience and a competition, and it reflects the pride and traditions of Native American culture through the years. In 2020, Native American tribes across the US were disproportionally hit by the Corona virus, partly because they tend to live in multi-family housing and compounds where the virus easily spreads among relatives, and because they are often isolated from medical providers on reservations. This is a celebration of their endurance.
Biography
Mary Lucier has been known for her multi-channel video installations since the early 1970s. After studying sculpture and literature at Brandeis University, she traveled with the Sonic Arts Union for several years, collaborating in concerts throughout the United States and Europe. Her mixed-media work since 1975 has often explored the theme of landscape as a metaphor for loss and regeneration. Her video work has been shown in major museums around the world where it now resides in numerous collections, such as the Whitney Museum of American Art, Museum of Modern Art, Reina Sofia, Stedeljik Museum, ZKM, and San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. She has been the recipient of many awards and fellowships, notably Anonymous Was a Woman, National Endowment for the Arts, Guggenheim Fellowship, Creative Capital, USA Artists, and Japan-US Friendship Commission. She lives and works in New York City and Cochecton, NY.
