With just a glance at one of Lea Colombo’s photographs, you’ll instantly recognize it: hazy, psychedelic, and saturated in profound colour, the South African’s work is a multi-faceted exploration of feminine energy.
Colombo’s distinctive style has made her a favourite of leading fashion publications and brands alike – from Dazed and i-D, to Marni and Versace. This year, however, the artist has been working tirelessly on an entirely personal project which sees her turn the camera on herself. Titled Colours of My Body, the work comprises Colombo’s first solo show – currently staged in both Cape Town and Los Angeles – and a larger-than-life 600-page book of the same name, which is set to arrive in December.
Courtesy of Lea Colombo
Investigating Colombo’s “relationship with her higher self”, the exhibition is a kaleidoscopic ode to colour and the female form, spanning a variety of mixed media including sculpture, photography, and drawing, and including more than 77 original prints, bronze and stone sculptures, lighting, furniture, and installation art. When probed about how working on this body of work has felt in comparison to making fashion imagery, Colombo simply responded, “Free.”
Here, speaking in her own words:
“The book is a labour of love, light, colour, shape and form. It is a compilation of streams of consciousness, and an alignment of self – a nurturing of self – even through the exploration of my body … I really channeled whatever came to me and as a result there are even written poems.
“It happened so organically. I finally had some time to be and to allow space to create. So I started creating new work on a daily basis and it soon evolved into a near 600-page book of all new and unseen artwork.
“I never wanted to set myself any limitations. I was drawn to certain mediums at different times throughout the entire creation of this body of work. I was tapping into colour from an array of new mediums, especially with the drawing, splashes of colour, anything that jumped at me really. It was a true moment to try anything and everything that came to mind. I loved the process of adapting these new mediums to my intuitive understanding of colour – harnessing it in different ways whilst exploring its power, energy and gravitational pull.
“The interesting thing about colour is that it can guide emotions in so many different ways: it can either amplify an emotion or maintain an emotion. The beauty of it is that the relationship with colour and emotion is forever changing.
“I am attracted to [colour’s] vibration and energy, the frequency that it gives off and has, or holds. It allows a deeper expression. Colour is the living touchstone of reality. Everything that we see and experience is made up of a spectrum of colours – it’s how we relate to the world and ourselves. As such, it is a pivotal component of my artistic and photographic expression. It is how I render my relationship to subject and self.
Courtesy of Lea Colombo
“[My hopes for the book are] for people to organically connect and relate to the various elements of self and colour. It is an invitation for people to explore their own relationships with body, personal power, light and most importantly a connection to higher consciousness.”
Colours of My Body is now showing at SPACEBY in Cape Town and Terminal 27 in Los Angeles.
Cody is the Editor in Chief and senior contributor at liminul.
He is a photography aficionado, fashion enthusiast, avid Lana Del Rey fan, and lover of all things aesthetically pleasing.
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