Artist's Reception for Houston Artist Michael Crawford, Works in Light

Houston based artist Michael Crawford shows his “Works in Light” Gallery Opening at Aurelia Gallery on Canyon Road. Michael works out of Santa Fe’s Light Foundry Studio, drawing from his compatriots Fred Unterseher and Augie Muth. His artwork explores the interaction of light with natural objects, such as Ethiopian Opal, Sunflower petals, and Tulip Tree leaves from the forest in Splendora.

Light touches. It goes in and stays, or bounces off, leaving colors behind. It goes through and twists and bends. Michael E Crawford is a pioneer in light-in-space, using elemental light — a pure thin beam of one-color light, holographic techniques, and handmade light-sensitive emulsion on glass, to create forms imbued with color, color brought forth from within the light that illuminates each piece.

This work employs holography to record and encircle entire wavefronts of light within the emulsion. In each exposure, the light guides the reflections and refractions off familiar objects to uncover, by the patterns that emerge, insights into their nature, and into how we visually comprehend.

Crawford holds a BA in Natural Science, from Austin College, with an emphases on Biophysics & English; postgraduate studies at University of Houston in Future Studies, Austin College in holography, and University of Texas in optics and biochemistry

Shows include:

Austin College, Sherman, TX: Sunset Gallery, Houston, TX; Forever, Cerise, Boston MA; International Symposium on Display Holography ’88; Lake Forest College, Lake Forest IL; International Symposium on Display Holography, ’91, ’94, ‘97, St. Polten, Austria; St. Asaph, Wales; ISDH, ’03, ‘06; St. Petersburg, Russia; MIT Media Lab, Boston MA; ISDH, ’12, ’15; Third Dimension Fair, College of Architecture, Houston ’14; Moving Image Art Fair, Milan, Italy, ’16; Big Show, Lawndale, Moving Image Art Fair, MIAfair2017, Milan, Italy, Mar.’17; Bring your own beamer, Aurora Picture Show at Menil Collection exterior, May’17; Currents, Santa Fe June ’17; Onishi/NYC June ’17; Lawndale Art Center, Oct.’17; Vierraumladen Gallerie/Berlin Nov.’17, MIAfair 2018, Milan, City Museum, Aveiro, Portugal, ‘18.

Crawfords work appears in collections worldwide, including: Paris, France; Berkeley, California; Derby, Derbyshire, England; Birkenwald, France, Santa Fe, New Mexico, San Antonio, Texas; Sherman, Texas; Kleindal, France; Houston, Texas.

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