Sezio

Ten Years in the making, Lux Art Institute opened its doors this past November. They were kind enough to offer a tour of their gallery, artist residence and educational facilities. Below are some pictures and video from our visit, along with some thoughts on the day by Andrew Heine.

Lux Art Institute - All Photos by Alex Oat

The Lux Art Institute in Encinitas, the creative experience is all around you. It's housed in a beautiful, contemporary styled building nestled on a hillside thick with native vegetation. The breeze smells like the ocean. As an artist, I always find that a large part of creativity is dependent on the environment I'm in, and I found myself taking mental notes at Lux. It made me feel like painting.

It is no coincidence that the institute is sculpted in a way that effectively calms the mind and promotes creativity. It's the point. Lux is a new approach to the museum experience that involves exposing visitors to not only an artist's finished product, but the artistic process itself. Every month or so, a new artist moves into a beautiful apartment just below the main gallery. They're there to produce a specific work over the course of their stay, and have several hours each day scheduled when the public may come in and watch the process. The purpose of this according to Reesey Shaw, the Institute's director, is simple - to spread creativity by exposing people to the creative process. It certainly worked on me.

A unique installation piece in Reesey's office.

Lux Art Institute is open from 1-5pm on Thursdays and Fridays and 11am-5pm on Saturdays. Tickets are $10 but get you two visits, with the hopes that you'll come back to check on the artist's process or view the final product. Daniel Wheeler's photography exhibit will be on display until August 2nd.

View all of the pictures from our visit in the Photo Gallery

Visit www.luxartinstitute.org