7 December – 31 December 2007

Lightworks by Marcus Tremonto
Phillips de Pury & Company is proud to announce an exhibition of unique light works by MarcusTremonto. Approximately sixteen pieces will be on view and for sale at Phillips de Pury & Company’s Chelsea galleries from December 7 – 31, 2007.

In the contemporary spirit of welding the functionality of design and the transcendent quality of art, Marcus Tremonto has created a dazzling body of work that features chandeliers, tables and wall pieces as well as magnificent pieces in the form of table sculpture. These evocative works that manipulate and draw with light and which have been in development for the last three years will, for the first time, be showcased in a gallery setting. The cornerstone of this work is the artist-designer’s fascination with pushing the boundaries of readily available materials such as Perspex, into a precious work of art. For Marcus Tremonto, it is thedevelopment of materials that reflect the modern age and he strives to represent the future in shape. These ideas led to Tremonto winning Interior Design Magazines 2006 “Future Furniture” competition for a design utilizing rapid prototyping techniques. Marcus Tremonto has been working with a lighting material that is electroluminescent, carefully composing forms creating a process that leaves each a unique example: some which pay homage to icons of modern design and are contextualized in a wholly inventive way and others which enter a more abstract and futuristic realm.

The body of work will include pieces from the Fantasma and Stitch series. The Fantasma pieces are a group of table and hanging works formed from a hand-finished panel of Perspex that supports a glowing line – the electroluminescent material. The Stitch series expands on the potential of this material which is encased in the acrylic and has been shaped by hand to create a voluminous form. Some of these works reference the great designs of the modern era and others are more abstract and primal; in the shape of a sci-fi ray-gun cone or a sphere, all of which are referenced from pop culture and design history.

A series of tables and wall works will be produced for the show which will incorporate light-drawing and imprinting on their surfaces. The colorful and luminous presence of each of these remarkable objects creates a magical sensory experience.

Born to a painter father, Marcus Tremonto first studied science earning degrees in Analytical Mathematics and Mechanical Physics and then working as an engineer. After earning his M.F.A. at The Art Institute of Chicago, Marcus began his career as an artist and successfully exhibited his work in galleries. But his fascination and enjoyment of the future soon directed him to new mediums and sculpting in materials that were born out of technological advance. Working from his New York loft with few windows and a limited view to the buildings across the street, Marcus Tremonto began to experiment with designs that playfully expanded his restricted habitat. Fascinated with light of modern cities, he created a series of cityscapes that render a three-dimensional abstract skyline of miniature buildings hand-cut in plastic and lit up. This first series achieved worldwide press for the artist. The lack of a hearth prompted the artist to create a small wall piece that flickered with firelight. His work consistently has enabled light to be striped of its purely functional restraints. Lightworks draws upon these early motives to affect a space with light and render worlds for the imagination to inhabit.

The exhibition will be on view from 10-5 pm in the Floor 3 Gallery
Phillips de Pury & Company

450 West 15 Street New York, NY 10011 | Tel: (212) 940-1200