Len Lye

Len Lye is arguably one of the twentieth century’s most original artists; a one-man art movement spanning several countries and multiple media over a lifetime and beyond. As a New Zealander practicing in London during the pre-war years, and then a key figure in the post-war New York avant-garde art scene, Lye mapped a unique course through Modernism. Lye spent his career pursuing an ‘art of movement’. He wanted to affect people physically and emotionally, so that art became a full-body experience. Whether this was with dancing cinematography, or thunderous, flashing, oscillating metallic sculptures, his work stimulated the senses and was unforgettable. He was a pioneer of experimental film and kinetic sculpture, and his practice included painting and poetry, among numerous other media. The intensity, energy and excitement of his work were matched by a gregarious and restless personality; British poet Alistair Reid once described him as ‘the least boring person who ever existed’.