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 via Cultured Magazine Time, ephemerality, lightness, and darkness are constantly reinterpreted in art. Los Angeles born and based artist [Kelly Akashi](http://www.kellyakashi.com/) has recently presented art works around the world and is bringing her latest exhibition to the [SculptureCenter](https://www.sculpture-center.org/), located in Long Island, New York. In beginning the creation her debut solo institutional show, Akashi weighed the question 'what physical object will be able to represent my ideas and expressions most accurately'? Throughout her work, she came to the understanding that the sculptural objects that she created, satisfied her "formerly photographic concerns regarding the document, the operator in relationship to tool and print, and representation."  Utilizing her knowledge and skills from her practice of photography, Akashi manipulates glass and wax into varying twisted and bent shapes. Carefully placed near light sources, the sculptures are illuminated aspects of her show. Throughout the exhibition, there is a contrast between smooth, glossy and textured matte finishes. Using the dungeon-like space of SculptureCenter's basement, a major piece on the descending staircase will be activated by solar cells hanging on a bronze tree branch installed on the wall--one a glass orb with a lightbulb inside and the other a cast bronze of a tree branch. Fluctuating with the sun, when there isn't enough light to power the solar cells on the roof, the stairwell lights cease to function, varying the lighting intensity as visitors make their way to the basement.  Throughout Akashi’s work, glass forms are often placed in combination with other objects, such as candles and lost-wax bronze casts. Akashi displays these diverse elements within specifically designed structures, creating elaborate tableaus. Her arrangements suggest abstracted narratives of use and explore relationships between different forms and materials. For her exhibition at SculptureCenter, Akashi continues her exploration into specific connections between air and fire—two elements necessary to produce her glass works—by periodically lighting wax candles within her installations, altering the appearance of the works over time. Energetic and alchemical transformations of material are central to her work: the objects comprising Akashi’s sculptures are physical manifestations of the intangibility of a breath of air or a burst of flame.   The exhibition will be open to the public September 18 - December 18, 2017. Opening Reception will be held Sunday, September 17,  5 pm to 7 pm. * * * Written by Alexandria Johnson