Leslie Lewis Sigler’s paintings of silver and copper flatware, vessels, molds, and cutlery capture the enduring beauty and profound depth of these domestic objects. Reflecting individual and collective histories, these objects tell stories of the legacy of personal and familial ties. The seed for her work was planted when Sigler’s grandmother began gifting her one piece at a time from the family silverware collection.
In Sigler’s paintings, objects, histories, and emotional relations are brought vividly and suggestively to life. Each piece has its own unique story to tell, moments of polish and moments of tarnish. These domestic objects made of precious metal have a kind of eternal life – they may age beyond recognition, but polishing them will soon turn them to their original glory. Capturing the elegance of their form and the precision of their decorative flourishes, as well as to the play of light off their surfaces and even the shadows they cast, Sigler renders these singular objects in all their varied richness, elevating them beyond their mere functionality through her unique combination of near-photographic realism and painterly abstraction.
The work is about both aesthetic immediacy and symbolic significance: Sigler herself is often reflected – distorted yet visible – in the ever-changing patina of the objects she paints. Through her work, a series of portraits emerge whose enduring power and beauty reflect the depths of human character and the profound connectedness to shared history.
The objects themselves are a reflection of long histories. As they have been passed down from generation to generation and put to use at family gatherings, many generations have been reflected in their gleam, brought together by the objects’ connecting force around the table. Or perhaps discovered at an estate sale or thrift shop, salvaged from the purgatory of resale, for new personal and family histories to be created. Sigler’s paintings stand as an invitation to see life reflected as part of an evolving lineage that crosses generations and geography, connecting us all through time and space.
Leslie Lewis Sigler (b. 1983, San Marcos, TX) received a BFA from the University of Texas, Austin in 2006. Her work has been exhibition throughout the United States and appears in number private collections. The paintings have been published in American Art Collector, Content Magazine, The Santa Barbara Independent, and UPPERCASE Magazine, among others. She lives and works in Soquel, California.
