Bulgarian-born, New York based artist Luba Lukova is regarded as one of the most distinctive image-makers working today. Her work utilizes metaphors, juxtaposition of symbols, and economy of line to succinctly capture humanity’s elemental themes. Lukova’s use of accessible similes creates timeless, indelible images, while her art chisels away at the dross, the cliché and the predictable to reveal the heart of a subject.

 

Her new body of work triggers a debate over the conflicts that create a visual stream of consciousness aiming to undermine the widely accepted views. In each piece Lukova is charging the verge of the dynamic equilibrium with multiple meanings in which the spectator is invited to convey its meaning. The artist adopting the stance that “opposition brings concord and out of discord comes the fairest harmony”, while “the unapparent connection is more powerful than the apparent one”, allows the form and content to constantly overcome each other. Accordingly, this creates a thin dividing line where unresolved questions are generated. As such, the idea represents a differentiated way of seeing, whose goal is the elimination of simple “yes” or “no” judgements. After all, each finite entity has within itself the germ of its own negation.

 

Lukova’s art is immediately accessible and impossible to ignore. It does not merely build channels of communication; it attacks the senses on the most basic human level, but transcends that level through its cleverness with imagery and humor. In effect, between perceptions that trouble us and actions we hesitate about, tension emerges. Our commitment here is her proposal in synergy to overcome the limits of our perceptual boundaries.

 

Lukova's solo exhibitions have been held at UNESCO, Paris; DDD Gallery, Osaka, Japan; La MaMa, New York; and The Art Institute of Boston. Her many awards include Grand Prix Savignac at the International Poster Salon, Paris, France; the Golden Pencil Award at One Club, New York; and Honor Laureate at the International Poster Exhibition in Fort Collins, CO. She has received commissions from The New York Times, Time, Adobe Systems, Sony Music, Canon, Harvard University, the Cultural Ministry of France, and the War Resisters League. Her evocative theatre posters have graced numerous stage productions in the U.S. and Europe. Lukova's work is included in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York; The Library of Congress, Washington, DC; Bibliothèque Nationale de France; and Centre de la Gravure et de l'Image Imprimée, La Louvière, Belgium. She is the author of Social Justice 2008, a critically acclaimed poster portfolio containing passionate visual reactions to many of the pressing issues of our time. The Health Coverage poster, included in the portfolio, was in a prestigious exhibit at the Inauguration of President Obama in Washington, DC. Lukova holds an honorary degree of Doctor of Fine Arts from Lesley University, Cambridge, MA.

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