Alyson Denny is a New York-based artist who works experimentally with light to create abstract photographic images, both moving and still. Using layered refractors, custom-cut blockers, programmable LEDs, and variable-speed motors, she approaches light as both her material and her subject.

Denny studied filmmaking and physics at Harvard. During and after college, she worked on theatrical lighting and projections, mostly at The American Repertory Theater, and contributed to productions by Robert Wilson, Jennifer Tipton, and James Turrell. As a member of the Joshua Light Show, she has created abstract visuals live for musicians including Terry Riley, Lou Reed, MGMT, and Oneohtrix Point Never. Performances have included Lincoln Center and the Hayden Planetarium.

Her photographs and moving images have been exhibited regularly and reviewed by The New York Times and The New Yorker, which said the photographs from her Horizontal Line Series “swim with pure color.” One of those photographs appears on the cover of the fifth edition of Exploring Color Photography. Her moving images have been commissioned for private residences, featured in the inaugural screenings of OffTheWall@725Ponce on the largest outdoor screen in the Southeast, and presented in a solo exhibition at Atlanta Contemporary.

Denny is on the faculty of the School of Visual Arts in New York City, where she designed and teaches Light Lab, a course devoted to experimental lighting in photography and video.

Curriculum Vitae (PDF)

Video interviews:

​Video interview by Lyn Godley (done for the Waiting Room exhibit at HOTBED Gallery):

https://players.brightcove.net/3303963089001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6311949818112

​Video interview by Zachary Keeting and Chris Joy (done for their video series Gorky's Granddaughter):

http://www.gorkysgranddaughter.com/2017/11/alyson-denny-oct-2017.html