Laura Sallade

b. 1990; Reading, PA; lives and works in Philadelphia, PA
Laura Sallade’s practice investigates the relationship between the transient perception of light and material.  While her work can technically be classified as sculpture, the artist’s “wall hung” reflective glass works read as paintings - they use the presence and absence of light to convey emotional memories, capturing fleeting moments from the artist’s subconsciousness.  Best experienced in person, Sallade’s works communicate a mysterious and paradoxical understanding of the world through observation, drawing, materiality and making.  Through the use of negative space and her unique style of “drawing” with light, Sallade creates a luminous, mirror-like, multi-layered arrangement that produces an intense depth within a two-dimensional surface, inviting the viewer to meditate and reflect.  Described by the artist as “non-objective” rather than “abstract,” Sallade’s recent work is inspired by the urban landscape and layered facades of Philadelphia and embodies the fabric of urban chaos while exploring ideas of metropolitan flux and tension.

Sallade’s process is technically complex and distinct, born partially out of an arts education at The Pennsylvania Academy of The Fine Arts in Philadelphia that allowed her to follow, develop and experiment with her unrestricted curiosities.  Using controlled chemical reactions and manipulating multiple materials, including glass, silver nitrate, mylar and resin, the artist produces multi-layered reflective creations.  Both analytical and intuitive, the artist employs math, optics, memory and play to create evocative gestural works that walk the line between image and object.  Constantly wondering how she can divest herself from the material and instead use it as a learning tool, the artist commits to working from an energizing humility rather than an exhausting ego.  Instead of planning every step of the process and resigning to a predetermined outcome, the artist allows the process to surprise her.  Often working on multiple projects and ideas at once, Sallade never knows what layers will end up together in the end.  Inspired by artists such as Pat Steir and Gerhardt Richter, Sallade’s mission as an artist is to create utilitarian objects, meant to challenge her viewers to think critically, pay closer attention and take a moment for contemplation.  

Laura Sallade has exhibited throughout Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New York, Montana and Maryland, including group exhibitions at the Piano Craft Gallery in Boston, MA (2022), the Ann Marie Sculpture Garden & Art Center in Solomons, MD (2021), and the Woodmere Art Museum in Chestnut Hill, PA (2015). She obtained a Certificate in Sculpture from The Pennsylvania Academy of The Fine Arts in Philadelphia in 2013 and, during her studies, was awarded numerous grants and scholarships including the PAFA Fellowship Prize, the Richard C. Von Hess Travel Scholarship, the Susan Land Memorial Prize for Printmaking, and the Wolf Scholarship in Honor of Peter Paone. Sallade was selected for the Lackland Well Artist in Residence (2021), the Longwood University Visiting Artist (2021) and the NextFab Artisan Accelerator Fellowship (2021). She has recently been awarded the Michael Tomassoni Scholarship (2021), the Jurors Award from the Ann Marie Sculpture Garden & Art Center in Solomons, MD (2021) and Philly Current Magazine’s ‘Best of Philadelphia’ (2019). Sallade’s work has been commissioned for the permanent collections of the Ritz Carlton in Amelia Island, FL, Temple University in Philadelphia, PA, the Atlantic Aviation Airport in Philadelphia, PA, Vail Resort in Vail, CO, Anthropologie Clothing Stores in Philadelphia, PA & New York City, NY, and Dualtone Music Group in Nashville, TN. Her artwork is found in private collections around the world in cities such as Paris, Philadelphia, New York City, San Diego, Marseille and Nantucket. The artist lives and works in Philadelphia, PA.