Liza Lou

Art Brokerage: Liza Lou American Artist: b. 1969. Liza Lou is a Conceptual artist whose work is typically done in unlikely mediums, such as beads. Lou was born in New York, NY, to Bohemian turned born-again Christian parents. As a child, she moved to Minneapolis, MN, and grew up watching exorcisms and speaking in tongues. On a summer trip in 1989 to view the cathedrals of Florence and Venice, Italy, she became enthralled with the mosaic artwork that adorned the walls and ceilings of the churches. While attending the San Francisco Art Institute in California, Lou walked into a bead store and found herself far more interested in beads than paint. She began incorporating beads into her artwork, much to the chagrin of her teachers and classmates. Lou eventually left the Art Institute and began to work on what is known as her breakout piece, Kitchen (1995). The piece is a 168 square foot replica of a complete kitchen covered in beads. Lou hoped to take something mundane and boring, such as a kitchen, and transform it into something beautiful to rejoice over. Listings wanted.