LILIANE LIJN

Early Years

Born in New York City in 1939 to a family of European Jewish intellectuals, Lijn was shaped by an early sense of displacement and curiosity. Her family's creative background and the experience of growing up in postwar America deeply influenced her outlook. As a teenager, she moved to Switzerland, before relocating to Paris in 1958 to pursue studies in archaeology at the Sorbonne and art history at the École du Louvre. Immersed in the city's vibrant intellectual and artistic milieu, she attended Surrealist gatherings and began experimenting with collage and ink drawing, laying the foundations for her later interdisciplinary approach. Lijn has lived and worked in London since 1966, following formative periods in New York, Paris, and Athens.

Liliane Lijn Artworks

Lijn's art is defined by her pioneering use of movement, light, and language, exploring the interface between technology, literature, and the visual arts. She is best known for kinetic sculptures and installations that investigate perception, the dematerialisation of form, and archetypes of femininity.

Early Kinetic Works and Poem Machines

In the early 1960s, Lijn's residency at a New York plastics factory enabled her to experiment with industrial materials, fire, and acids, resulting in her first kinetic light works. Returning to Paris, she exhibited her Poem Machines (1963), motorised cylinders printed with words that spin at high speed, rendering language into visual vibration and exploring the origins of poetry in sound and movement. These works were inspired by Surrealist automatic writing and the idea of making poetry visible.

Koans and Feminine Archetypes

From the late 1960s, Lijn developed her iconic Koans—spinning, cone-shaped sculptures named after Zen Buddhist riddles. She positions these as potent symbols of the feminine, subverting traditional associations and exploring the dematerialisation of the body through movement and light. Her practice in the 1970s and 1980s expanded to include multimedia installations, performances, and works such as Woman of War (1986) and The Bride (1988), which reimagine goddess archetypes and challenge patriarchal narratives in art.

Language, Science, and Multimedia

Lijn's later works engage with scientific concepts, light, and interactivity, often inviting viewers to participate. Her extensive oeuvre encompasses sculpture, installation, film, sound, and public art, continually pushing the boundaries of contemporary art and technology.

Public Commissions

• White Koan, University of Warwick, Coventry
• Solar Beacon, Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco
• Inner Light, Prudential Insurance headquarters, Reading
• Starslide, Evelina Children's Hospital, London
• Land Sea Light Koan, St Mary's Hospital, Isle of Wight

Awards and Accolades

• Arts Council Award for Caution Matter (2012)
• Shortlisted for Fourth Plinth, Trafalgar Square, London (2013)
• Arts Council England International Artist Fellowship (2005)
• London Film Production Award (1996)
• Arts Council Bursary for Holography (1982)

Exhibitions

Liliane Lijn has been the subject of both solo exhibitions and group exhibitions at important institutions. Below is a selection of important exhibitions.

Solo Exhibitions

• Arise Alive, mumok, Vienna (2024–2025)
• Arise Alive, Tate St Ives (2025)
• Electric Dreams, Tate Modern, London (2024–2025)
• Liliane Lijn: I AM SHE, Ordet, Milan (2020)
• Spotlight, Tate Britain, London (2018)
• The Artist's Eye: Liliane Lijn, Douglas Hyde Gallery, Dublin (2017)

Group Exhibitions

• Radical Software, Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna (2025)
• Radical Software, Mudam, Luxembourg (2024–2025)
• Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946–1962, Addison Gallery of American Art, Massachusetts (2024–2025)
• Kinetics, Hayward Gallery, London (1970)

FAQs

Ocula | 2025