Alongside my public art practice with Legge Lewis Legge LLC, I have a solo studio practice, which lately concerns appropriation of media images, mostly fashion images shot in exotic natural locations. I scan, archival print, then paint, or ‘retouch’ out all evidence of art direction, in fact ‘re-wilding’ the scene. Of interest to me has been to further both these public and private practices by studying how they inform each other, with the idea to find new ground in both. Common in both practices is a desire to create ‘free’ space, be it painting space or public space, an antidote to the ordered and somewhat oppressive condition of the built, urban environment. This almost always means representing live elements, preferably indigenous landscapes (not just ‘landscaping’) that are allowed to grow and change with time and the seasons. I have worked extensively examining, parsing and discussing many different urban conditions in order to conceptualize the most appropriate projects for a given site, always with a desire to give visitors a sense of freedom, often gained by exposure to the unexpected, or uncontrolled.
Bio
Andrea Legge received a BFA from the Ontario College of Art and Design, Toronto Canada (NYC Off-Campusprogram) in 1984. During the 1980s she was a member of The Rivington School, a rambunctious gang of artists, writers and musicians who practiced freely and somewhat extremely on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Rivington School: 80s New York Underground, a survey of the group’s life and work was published in May 2017 by Back Dog Publishing, London, UK.
In 1988 Ms. Legge became active in alternative housing activities in NYC and homesteaded in the East Village, NYC for over 20 years. In 1998, toward the end of a 10-year career as Art Production Editor of American ELLE magazine, she earned an MFA from the School of Visual Arts, NYC. Her work has been seen in NEW YORK magazine, SMOCK, The New York Times, and on CNN News & Dateline NBC. Ms Legge continued as a part-time freelance graphic designer for many years and most recently was Art Director at SHAPE magazine until 2016.
In 2000, Ms. Legge co-founded Legge Lewis Legge, a collaborative art and design studio with her brother, architect Murray Legge FAIA, and filmmaker Deborah Eve Lewis, both in Austin, Texas. With a focus on largescale installations, public art and landscape design, Legge Lewis Legge has been widely recognized, including receiving a National AIA Design Award. Legge Lewis Legge is currently working on permanent projects in Austin, San Antonio, Calgary and San Diego where they are designing an aircraft observation park for the San Diego International Airport Authority.
Ms. Legge lives and works in NYC. Her current studio practice, like her work with Legge Lewis Legge, concerns landscape and an ongoing investigation of free space, both formal and conceptual.
Find Andrea Legge’s work at andrealegge.com and at leggelewislegge.com.