Liz Leggett

Statement

My work fluctuates between abstraction and representation, drawing and painting, and is a space where mark-making, materials, and colors channel physical and emotional energy. I work intuitively and gesturally, relying on the application of materials to instinctively guide the process. Each work reflects a mood, a span of time, internalized thoughts, feelings, and energy that are transferred, through the process of making, from a personal, internal place to the external world. 

I welcome viewers to bring their meanings and visual associations to each work, allowing for freedom and imagination. As I work, forms and imagery may emerge, but I intentionally leave them obscure. This grey area is what interests me–where a picture is not defined and rules are not set. There is no right or wrong, but rather an invitation to experience the work in a visceral, personal way. 

My recent works are on paper. Paper is flexible, economical, and often considered less precious than canvas. To me, using paper challenges the conventions of value, beauty, and consumerism–perceptions I observe and experience in everyday life and within my career in the contemporary art world. 

Bio

My drawings and paintings have been exhibited internationally, and I have been awarded artist residencies in France, Israel, Spain, the Pyrenees, Nova Scotia, New York, and Connecticut. I hold a BA from Skidmore College and an MFA from the Maine College of Art. I live and work in Westport, Connecticut.

Beyond my studio practice, I have curated numerous exhibitions, including Marilyn Minter: SMASH, PUNK is Coming, and World Peace. Formerly the Director of Exhibitions at MoCA Connecticut, I now work as an independent curator and as Studio Director for an internationally renowned artist. 

 Selected Exhibitions

2025
Light Speed, CAMP Gallery, Miami, FL
A•ONE, Silvermine Gallery, New Canaan, CT

2024
Volta Art Fair, Basel, Switzerland
Juried Invitational Exhibition, Edward Hopper House, Nyack, NY

2023
Abstract, Frenzied & Separate, CAMP Gallery, Westport, CT
In Media Res, URSA Gallery, Bridgeport, CT
As Is, ART06870 Gallery, Old Greenwich, CT

2022            
Hamptons Fine Art Fair, Southampton, NY
Art Market San Francisco, Chloe Gallery, San Francisco, CA

2020
Abstract is Not a Style: Five Women Painters, Hollis Taggart, Southport, CT
A•ONE, Silvermine Gallery, New Canaan, CT

2019
Paper, Silvermine Gallery, New Canaan, CT
Highlight Gramercy Park, National Arts Club, New York, NY
What She Hides, Main Street Space, Westport, CT

2018
Head Over Heels, Newton Roux Gallery, Westport, CT
Wearable Books, One Main Street, Westport, CT

2017
Chromatic, Maritime Garage Gallery, Norwalk, CT

2015
Dreamscapes, Westport Arts Center, Westport, CT

2014
Perception Illusion Magic, Westport Arts Center, Westport, CT

2008
The Panorama Project, Jonathan Levine Gallery, New York, NY

2007
The Pathos of Ecstasy, Muhlenberg College, Allentown, PA
East Coast Painters, Brian Marki Gallery, Portland, OR
Quinta Essentia, Borowicz Gallery, South Dartmouth, MA
Artist Viewing Program, The Drawing Center, New York, NY

2005
Small World, Aidan Savoy Gallery, New York, NY
Abstract Painters, Soprafina Gallery, Boston, MA                   

2004
Abre Tus Ojos, Aidan Savoy Gallery, New York, NY                  
Invitational Alumni Exhibition, Tang Museum, Saratoga Springs, NY 

2003
New Paintings, 55 Mercer Gallery, New York, NY
Women Painters - A Survey, Pratt Gallery, Brooklyn, NY
Collective, 69a Gallery, San Francisco, CA

1998
Modern Painters: A Survey, Arad Art Museum, Arad, Israel
Influence, ZOA Gallery, Tel Aviv, Israel

Residencies

Swindells Studio, Montot, France, 2024 & 2025
Brown Pink, Kingston, NY, 2023
The Ridgefield Guild, Ridgefield, CT, 2021
Weir Farm, Wilton, CT, 2012 & 2017
Baie St. Marie, Nova Scotia, Canada, 2016
Fundación Valparaiso, Almería, Spain, 2004
Centre d’Art i Natura, Catalunya, Spain, 2003
Summer Six, Saratoga Springs, NY, 2001, 2003
Arad Arts Project, Arad, Israel, 1997-1998

Curation

Tomokazu Matsuyama: Morning Sun
Edward Hopper House Museum, 2025

Portal: The Window in American Photography 
Edward Hopper House Museum, 2025

Purvis Young: This is the Life I See 
MoCA CT, 2023

Punk is Coming
MoCA CT, 2022

Kristyna & Marek Milde: Carpetorium, Wilderness of Home
MoCA CT, 2021

Between the Ground & Sky
MoCA CT, 2021

Unfit for Print / Elan Vitale / Love Wins
MoCA CT, 2021

Marilyn Minter: Smash 
MoCA CT, 2021

World Peace 
MoCA CT, 2020

Helmut Lang: 41.1595° N, 73.3882° W
MoCA CT, 2020

Yayoi Kusama: All the Light We Cannot See 
MoCA CT, 2019

What She Hides 
MoCA CT, 2019

Handmade: Women Reshaping Contemporary Art 
Westport Art Center, 2018

Annual High School Student Exhibition 
MoCA CT, 2017–2023

Professional Experience

Director, Mariko Mori Studio
New York, NY & Tokyo, Japan, 2024–Present

Director of Exhibitions
MoCA CT
Westport, CT, 2017– 2023

Graphic Designer
Sotheby’s
Marketing & Catalogue Design Departments, New York, NY, 1998-2009

Art Director
The Knitting Factory
New York, NY, 1996-1997

Artist Assistant
Dennis Oppenheim
New York, NY, 1994-1995

Gallery Director
Case Art Gallery
Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY, 1992-1994

Education


Bachelor of Science
Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY, 1994
Studio Art Major, Art History Minor
Concentration in painting & drawing

Master of Fine Art
Maine College of Art, Portland, ME, 2006
Concentration in painting & drawing

Using Format