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Unweaving the rainbow


With an alchemic mix of luminous colour and radiant light, her work heightens senses and provokes emotions. Artist Liz West talks about their significance for human well-being, her creative approach – and the parallels between her work and that of designers


OVER THE YEARS I have received feedback that my work offers a sanctuary or an experience of pure light and colour that is not commonly encountered on a daily basis. It is this purity of colour and light combined that I am most interested in, as our domestic and social environments are so full of visual noise from which we need a mental escape. I often spend a lot of time in the space, almost like a mini artist-residency, to digest the impact of its scale, atmosphere and purpose. From this I either instinctively know what to make, or through intellectually interrogating the geographical and sociological history of the site, I make a piece of art that feels like it truly ‘belongs’ by tying together elements succinctly that have a human relationship to the space.


My creative practice defiantly demonstrates crossovers between art and design. Tat manifests both in the way I tend to make work especially for a particular project or space rather than creating without a site in mind, and in the way that I digest and follow briefs given by commissioners or clients.


Left With flourescent coloured lights spraying against mirrored walls, Liz West’s work uses vivid colour palettes in order to create a sanctuary of light and luminosity. Spending extended amounts of time within the space or on-site, she is able to create works that have a solid sense of identity within their context


Installation: T8 fluorescent bulbs, cellulose gels,


polycarbonate sleeves, mirror, wood, metal frame


Dimensions: 1000cm (L) x 500cm (W) x 240cm (H)


Date: 2015


I do, though, also have an ongoing experimental and research-based studio practice, where I develop my work through an interrogation of materials, drawing – making things that no one will ever see and where I sometimes fail. For me, the crossover exists more explicitly in the part of my practice that is commission-based rather than in the gallery works I produce. Tis is predominantly because these are the works where I am being asked to respond to a brief or site, specifically as a designer would. I aim to apply my artistic voice or ‘sonic-signature’ to every work I make (as any designer worth their salt does), no matter the origin of the project.


Tis can sometimes be challenging in a commission- based scenario, as the clients often think that they know what they want until you perhaps surprise them with something unexpected and different. Te ability to


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