GRIMANESA AMOROS
Grimanesa Amoros is a Peruvian-born American artist whose monumental light sculptures explore community connection within the intersection of history, technology, and architecture. Her installations incorporate video, lighting, and electronic elements to create immersive environments that bridge cultures and diverse audiences. She describes her work as a constant romance with the unknown. We all connect to light.
Amoros first incorporated light into her practice following a trip to Iceland, where she encountered the northern lights and realised the powerful ephemeral magic light held. Since then, her projects have become international in scope, merging architecture and history, local cultural elements, and the spirit of communities to create site-specific works that become part of their environments. She draws upon important cultural legacies for inspiration without holding a nostalgic view of her subjects. In the art of Grimanesa Amoros, the past is meeting the future.
SCIENTIA · Azkuna Zentroa, Bilbao
Monumental light sculpture · Courtesy the artist
Grimanesa Amoros I draw inspiration from nature, architecture, and the cultural heritage of the communities surrounding the artwork I create. I am a daughter of an engineer, and in many ways I inherited his way of thinking about space and its effect on individuals within communities. When I create my large-scale sculptures, I consider how architecture, the viewers, and the piece communicate with one another, becoming one. It is a never-ending source of inspiration, the essential element of my work.
Grimanesa Amoros Technology is rapidly evolving, and it is exciting to see how the art world incorporates these new methods of making. I cannot predict the next big thing, but I believe art that expresses the unique qualities of the artist will remain most impactful. I create work that utilises but is not defined by its relationship to technology.
Grimanesa Amoros When I create a large-scale light sculpture, I begin with a site survey. This is an essential element of my practice. For my piece to connect with an audience, it must have been inspired by the surrounding community. I am onsite for each of my installations, working in extreme weather conditions, overseeing the entire process. It involves coordination, significant logistics from both sides of the teams, and, most importantly, communication. Attention to detail is critical.
Programming my lighting sequences is like composing a piece of music. Each note has its moment in time and space. I often compare what I do to drawing onsite. While I create renderings for installation ahead of time, the final placement of the lights and the programming of the piece depends on the physical architectural space. My presence in the moment is essential.
"Programming my lighting sequences is like composing a piece of music. Each note has its moment in time and space."
Grimanesa AmorosGrimanesa Amoros I am looking forward to contributing to the summit as it allows me a platform to share the message of wellbeing and connection throughout the arts. My goal is to make people think, and to have them become inspired to live more purposeful, creative lives.
Grimanesa Amoros When creating monumental sculpture, I consider how our architectural surroundings influence and affect our state of mind. Art provides a means, and has the power to, access our emotional selves. It makes us more empathetic, it gives us the space to nurture and prosper. Studies have shown how light improves our mood and mental health. As a medium, it has the ability to bridge cultures and diverse audiences. We all connect to light.
Grimanesa Amoros I always say that when we have our health, we have everything. Wellbeing is attending to our inner selves. We must live in balance, physically, mentally, and emotionally. It is a process we are required to nurture and foster throughout our lives, but it is well worth the effort. We cannot effectively share ourselves with the world if we are not whole.
Amoros unveiled SCIENTIA on June 1st, a monumental new site-specific sculpture at Azkuna Zentroa-Alhondiga Bilbao, Society and Contemporary Culture Centre, where it is installed in the atrium until August 31st. Upcoming projects follow in Saudi Arabia, Mexico, New York, and Germany.
Grimanesa Amoros We cannot make art to please others. We have to do it to make them think. When I lecture, I refer listeners to my motto LPP: Love, passion, and perseverance. It has been essential in my practice since the beginning of my career.
© Studio Grimanesa Amoros. Courtesy of the artist