Sem Lala’s "Earthworks" is a vibrant print dominated by a striking red background interspersed with angular, geometric shapes in black. These repeating motifs resemble hieroglyphic-like symbols, creating a rhythmic pattern around the canvas. The stark contrast between the red and black emphasizes the warning nature derived from architect Mike Brill's designs for conveying danger. Lala's work aligns with formalist art, mirroring suprematist ideals of universal communication through geometric forms. This piece challenges the permanence of messages over time, questioning the enduring clarity of visual symbols across generations. ...
Sem Lala presents a new series of silk-screened paintings inspired by architect Mike Brill’s designs for the Waste Isolation Pilot Program (WIPP), which aims to warn future civilizations about buried nuclear waste. These works draw from Brill’s earthwork plans, which use geometric shapes to communicate danger across thousands of years. Lala’s paintings highlight the visual similarities between these warning systems and formalist art movements like suprematism, which sought a universal language of shapes and symbols. By blending these ideas, the series explores how meaning shifts over time and questions whether any message can remain clear forever.
Sem Lala (b. 2000 in Elbasan, Albania) is an artist and musician based in New York, currently studying at Bard College. His work explores themes of agency and appropriation, encompassing both visual art and performance. Lala often examines how cultural shifts and appropriation influence artistic expression. He has exhibited widely, including solo exhibitions at Foksal Gallery Foundation in Warsaw (2025), Hot Wheels Gallery in Athens (2024), and Plymouth Rock in Zurich (2021). His work has also been featured in group exhibitions at Weiss Falk in Basel (2020), gta Exhibitions in Zurich (2020), Haus Wien in Vienna (2021), Les Urbaines in Lausanne (2020), and Lateral Roma in Rome (2021) and among many others. ...
Lovay Fine Arts is dedicated to present innovative and critical practices by emerging and historical international artists. The gallery aims to connect various generations and nationalities to ground the program in a broad history of art.
