CWU senior artist asks, 'What is wrong with these lights?'

CWU Bachelor of Fine Arts student Cyann Lillevold will be displaying her senior exhibition, Night Lights, next week in Gallery 231.

Through long-exposure photography, Lillevold tackles astigmatism by taking back control of the light that would usually blind her. By using a mixture of car lights, handheld lights, models, music, and the road, Lillevold's photographs give the viewer a new outlook on light and travel.

"I am reshaping the light that once blinded me to highlight the unforeseen adventures that come from traveling," she said. "I use freeway overlooks to capture the light emitted from the cars that drive past. I also ask my models to play their everyday music while they dance around with handheld lights to create abstract drawings of light."

Night Lights will open in Randall Hall on Monday, May 22, and a closing reception will be from 5-7 pm Friday, May 26. Gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays.

When Lillevold was growing up, she spent a lot of time traveling to visit her extended family. As she has gotten older and started traveling on her own, she learned that she has astigmatism, a condition that causes lights to be flared and blinding.

As she prepares to graduate, Lillevold looks forward to sharing the work she has collected from the last four years experimenting with long-exposure photography to demonstrate this new way of looking at the light that would usually be blinding for her.

To learn more about the exhibit, email lillerosephoto@gmail.com. See more of Lillevold's work on Instagram at @lillerosephoto_123.