The Light Within the Unknown

The Light Within the Unknown by Alexa Padilla is an abstract piece that catches the attention with its mysteriousness. At first glance, only an abstract use of light is perceivable, one doesn’t know what to make out of it, but that in itself is its beauty. Alexa’s works capture the uncertain; her design warps our perspective with everyday objects.

This work is a photo of house decorations; Christmas lights, water, and

holographic paper. But she organizes the elements to become un-perceivable; by layering pictures, she creates another worldly setting. The piece itself has a high contrast point due to the handling of the light; light shines through in certain places and leaves darkness in others. This, combined with the sprinkles of water creates rhythm through a diagonal composition.

Although the piece is an abstract one, it contains depth and carries the eye from the foreground to the background, making the viewer transport into an almost physical place that the work seemingly creates. The result makes us try to look further into it and contextualize it based on our interpretation, and that is precisely what Alexa wants, to make an artwork unexpectedly subjective, open for different narratives.