Bio:
Lelia Byron is an interdisciplinary artist who makes paintings, murals, sculptures, installations, and public art projects. Some recent work includes a public sculpture titled Quilt in Wisconsin made from repurposed wood, a narrative installation made with students at the Rauma Art Museum in Finland, a series of paintings about women coffee farmers in Colombia, a mural in a public square in Sicily documenting local stories, outdoor sculptures in rural Portugal made from recycled plastic, and a series of paintings about workers in Massachusetts fighting for labor rights. Lelia has a Bachelor’s of Fine Art from Carnegie Mellon University and a Master’s in Fine Art from Chelsea College of Arts (University of the Arts London).
Lelia Byron currently has a solo exhibition titled Blue Psyche at Larson Art Gallery at the University of Minnesota from November 5 to December 10, 2021.
Exhibition Statement:
Dreams are a lot like locked rooms where you can exist with your own intimate self and thoughts. If you lock the door yourself, you are in control of the dream, but if someone else locks it, the dream can become a nightmare. In the exhibition Blue Psyche, artist Lelia Byron creates a series of paintings based on remembered fragments and written records of her own dreams. Why do some dreams keep recurring, and who is locking the door? With intensely saturated colors that convey a sense of drama, the paintings, made in 2021, can become a window into the locked room, exploring loss, confinement, disruption, grief, isolation, freedom, imagination, peace, hope, wonder, and the fantastical. The paintings offer a more permanent and complete view into the dream bubble, which can burst so quickly after waking up and opening the door.
