Lightforms Art Center

05/20/2026

"The Greatest of All Secrets," a solo exhibition of Sampsa Pirtola, a Finnish video and multimedia artist from Helsinki currently based in New York for a multi-year curatorial and artistic residency at Lightforms Art Center. He received his MFA from Uniarts Helsinki: The Academy of Fine Arts. Sampsa will give an artistic and curatorial presentation on Friday, May 29 at 7pm at Lightforms.

On view in the exhibition is Sampsa Pirtola’s abstract experimental video work, "Salaisuuksista Suurin [The Greatest of All Secrets]," a mysterious and allegorical narrative that tells the story of a young magician encountering an old magician—one imprisoned for life, the other free. Through this encounter, the film unfolds as a mythological journey across cultures whose traditions are built upon an immense lie. In the end, the greatest trick of all is revealed.

Accompanied by a richly atmospheric score by Aino Peltomaa and Harmony of the Spheres from Finland, the work weaves together breathtaking abstract imagery and symbolic storytelling. Pirtola’s striking experimental video sequences guide the viewer through shifting states of perception, where narrative dissolves into ritual, memory, and illusion.

This exhibition is curated by Sampsa Pirtola and Zoï Doehrer, and presented in collaboration with . Open Thursday–Sunday, 1–5pm.

05/18/2026

"Painting the Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz" is a solo exhibition of 26 paintings by Laura Summer inspired by the 16th century initiatory text, The Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz.

Between September 2025 and March 2026, Laura Summer facilitated an online study group dedicated to working through the text in depth. The experience became the foundation for this body of work. “These paintings are the result of my study,” says Laura. She distilled the text into “moments of meaning that are universal to those on an initiatory spiritual path – not exclusive to christianity, anthroposophy, or any one belief system.”

The exhibition also functions as an Art Dispersal (held on June 6 and 7), a form developed by Summer through her work with Free Columbia, in which original artworks are entrusted to stewards rather than sold in the conventional sense. Participants may take a painting home for as long as they wish and return or pass it on when ready. Developed in response to limitations of the contemporary art market, the form seeks to allow art to actively live and work within human spaces.
“Original work on a wall can transform a space,” Summer writes, “and it can also transform the people who are in those spaces.” Stewards are invited to support Free Columbia and Lightforms Art Center through voluntary contributions that sustain the conditions for creative work to circulate freely.

This exhibition is curated by Sampsa Pirtola and presented in collaboration with . Open Thursday–Sunday, 1–5pm.

05/17/2026

The Art of the Heart, one of our five solo exhibitions currently on view through June 7, features work by interdisciplinary artist Lucien Dante Lazar exploring the intersections of art, science, and spirituality. Through paintings, drawings, and mixed media works, Lazar creates a deeply personal visual language centered on perception, consciousness, and the transformative power of love. Using luminous color and richly sensitive textures, the exhibition invites viewers into a space of reflection, freedom, and creative awakening. Lazar will give a lecture and presentation on Fri, May 22 at 7pm.

At the core of the exhibition is Lazar’s ongoing exploration of the “etheric heart," a vision of humanity as both seeker and steward, connected to both inner spiritual life and the living world around us. This exhibition is curated by Sampsa Pirtola and presented in collaboration with . Open Thursday–Sunday, 1–5pm.

05/15/2026

Opening tomorrow (Saturday) at 6pm: five solo exhibitions featuring artists Laura Summer, Lizzy Marshall, Lucien Dante Lazar, Sampsa Pirtola, and Laura Arteaga Charlton.

Lightforms is a center for cultural renewal that brings creative artists and their artwork into the public domain in innovative ways that stimulate dialogue around the inner and outer challenges of our time and attempts to serve the spiritual needs of human beings in their daily lives.

04/29/2026

Friday, May 1 at 7pm: Performance by Laurie Portocarrero "How Do I Love Thee...?" Weaving together poetry, story, song, and the dramatic magic of Shakespeare, actor and storyteller Laurie Portocarrero takes us on a journey through all the crazy, difficult, wonderful, funny, and profoundly transformative ways that we love.

04/28/2026

Final week: exhibitions by Richard Neal and Jason Healy on view Thur-Sun 1-5pm through May 3.

Richard Neal, Conversations in Color 32, acrylic on canvas, 30.5x41 inches.

04/24/2026

There's still time to register for Stephen Steen's poetry workshop, happening tomorrow at 11am!

04/23/2026

Installation view of paintings from Richard Neal's "Conversations in Color," on view Thurs-Sun, 1-5pm, through May 3!

04/21/2026

Join us this Friday at 4:30pm for a lecture and conversation with Christopher Schaefer at Lightforms.

Christopher Schaefer, Ph.D., is a retired adult educator, community development consultant and writer. He has been on a search for what can bring hope and social healing to our difficult times for many years.

04/20/2026

Jason Healy, "Vivid Dreams," oil on canvas, 36x48". Jason's solo exhibition of paintings, "Landscapes from Inside," is on view Thur-Sun from 1-5pm through May 3, at 743 Columbia St, Hudson, NY.