Featured Visual Artist Issue #16

We can manipulate physical space by means of focusing the eye on varying highlights and shadows; this duality of forces – this play on negative space – is the drive behind my choice to integrate light into the art. When we focus on what is fully illuminated from the outside of the piece, we are inherently drawn deeper into the corners and layers of what has been hidden from us; what has suddenly become unclear, or seemingly become a void. It is in these ‘in-between’ spaces, this balancing of ethereal qualities of light squared against the shoulder of “dark matters” that give my work a beating heart, and I expect shares an intimate quality with the viewer. The symbolic scripture, and use of varied colored wood brings in a simultaneous feeling of being present in both the past and future, ushering in timelessness. A pulse of a life force that lives and grows within the sculpture, mirroring the experience within the viewer.

Noah McGinley is a multifaceted, multi-media artist living and working in a light art studio in Berkeley, California. A self-taught artist with 20 years of woodworking/build expertise, coupled with over 8 years of graphic design knowledge, McGinley has entranced and elevated the experience of clients, businesses, and festival communities alike with his staggering sculpture pieces. Through the articulate melding and layering of seemingly polarizing materials such as wood, etched plastic, metal, and LED lights, McGinley creates pieces that have a life of their own, inciting the viewer to look a little closer. Bringing experiences to life with the Audiowaska team and Berkeley artist Brian Pinkham‘s rare, unique LED programming and
“brains” in much of his work, McGinley’s design work extends into the collaborative sphere, inviting materials to blend seamlessly. His work has been appreciated nationally and internationally at the likes of Symbiosis Gathering, Enchanted Forest Festival, Priceless, Lucidity Festival, Burning Man, as well as private events and installations.

To see more or purchase one of his unique pieces, visit: https://www.etsy.com/shop/SymmetryBoxes or NoahMcGinley.com