Liza Little

Artist Statement

Above all, I value curiosity and empathy. My work embodies these values through considered use of form and materials. I use the sensory qualities of glass, ceramics, and concrete to contemplate physicality, perception, emotion, and the self-image. My sense of form comes from thinking about how my bodily experience differs from mainstream societal expectations.
My material research investigates how form, texture, luminosity, and surface affect emotive qualities. Tactile mediums are an invitation to spend more time with the work. As lighting situations change, so does the sculpture, making a permanent object feel fleeting. Using materials and processes that may be unfamiliar provides the viewer an opportunity to be curious about what it is or how it was made. In this way, I hope to impart the same sense of wonder I have while interacting with my surroundings.
Methodical experimentation results in variation that makes the dialogue between sculptures as interesting as discrete pieces. This is especially evident in the Wall of Masks. Presented in a cluster, the mind can wander between portraits to appreciate the individual as well as the collective. Some faces are sculpted from life, others from imagination. Several are the same face replicated in multiple mediums. They differ in texture, color, mood, and formal languages. These factors give rise to reflection on individuality, facial recognition and likeness. Through this exploration, I question what it takes to identify a portrait as a specific person versus a symbolic face.
Sculpting the figure, I am interested in the difference between my own haptic experience versus portrayals of people in mainstream culture and the western cannon of figuration. As a former aspiring ballet dancer, I grew up to see myself in terms of all the things my body was not. Studying anatomy, sculpture and neuroscience helped me appreciate the beauty in every body, including my own. I hope my work inspires self-love and body positivity.