Lecture and Exhibition by New York Artist Lesley Dill via LSU College of Art + Design
“We Are Animals of Language” | LSU Design Building Auditorium | October 9, 2013, at 5 p.m.
I Gave My Whole Life to Words | LSU Museum of Art | September 6, 2013 – January 19, 2014
Acclaimed New York artist Lesley Dill will present a lecture entitled “We Are Animals of Language” as part of the LSU College of Art + Design Paula G. Manship Endowed Lecture Series.
Lesley Dill is one of a series of visiting artists participating in LSU School of Art’s 2013–14: Malleable Language exhibition season, whose theme is the visual and critical exploration of the artistic tradition of intermingling text and image. Her works in sculpture, photography, and performance use a variety of media and techniques to explore themes of language, the body, and transformational experience. Dill has called herself a “matchmaker of words and images,” and she often pulls from the poems of Emily Dickinson and other poets and writers to create sculptural costumes, mannequins, and floor-to-ceiling backdrops covered in interweaving black text and images.
Lesley Dill (b. 1950, New York), Ms. Extaxie, I Was Born with a Veil, 2012. Mannequin, oil paint, fabric, horsehair, thread, and mixed media.
Dill’s work has been widely exhibited and collected and is on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, and Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City; the Albright Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York; the Cleveland Museum of Art in Ohio; and the Kemper Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.
A Huffington Post review described her 2012 exhibition, Faith & the Devil, as follows: “Dill covers George Adams Gallery in textual snippets that come together like a Victorian ransom note. Words cover everything—they spin, contort, and explode across the gallery walls and floor.”
Lesley Dill (b. 1950, New York), Extaxie Pup, 2012. Mannequin, oil paint, fabric, horsehair, thread, and mixed media. Photo by Mike Smith.
In her lecture, “We Are Animals of Language,” Dill will explain why words have such meaning for her and how she uses text in her work. Hosted by the LSU School of Art, the lecture is open to the public and will be held in the auditorium of the Design Building on the LSU campus at 5 p.m. on October 9, 2013. A reception with the artist will follow from 7 – 8 p.m. at the LSU Museum of Art, where attendees may view Dill’s work in the exhibition, I Gave My Whole Life to Words, which will run September 6, 2013, through January 19, 2014.
To view a complete schedule of the LSU College of Art + Design Lecture Series, visit design.lsu.edu.
Lesley Dill is a contemporary artist living in Brooklyn, New York. She received a BA from Trinity College, a MA from Smith College, and a MFA from Maryland Institute of Art. She is represented by George Adams Gallery in New York and Arthur Roger Gallery in New Orleans. She is a 2013 recipient of the SGC International Lifetime Achievement in Printmaking Award from Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, and she received a Rockefeller Foundation Multi Artists Production Award with Tom Morgan in 2007.
About LSU School of Art
The LSU School of Art combines the best of both worlds: the resources and faculty of a large liberal arts institution and the personal attention that comes in a close-knit community. Students in the School of Art develop specialized skills while experimenting with various mediums, exploring their own creative intuition, and studying art history and contemporary art theory. Education comes from intensive critiques, working studio classes, dedicated professors, and engagement with the larger arts community through a curriculum that combines academic teaching and hands-on experiences, both on and off campus. For more information, visit design.lsu.edu/art.
About LSU College of Art + Design
The LSU College of Art + Design supports programs in studio art, art history, architecture, graphic design, interior design, and landscape architecture. The college brings together a focus on creativity and expression, talented faculty, specialized concentration areas, outstanding studio and gallery spaces, and a connection to the community to create a dynamic program. For more information, visit design.lsu.edu.