Bio: Kennedy Yanko, 37, Miami
Title of work: Light as Waves
Where to see it: “Without Gravity” at Pace Prints, 536 West 22nd Street, New York, NY 10011
Three words to describe this work: Geographic, resonant, suspended
What was on your mind at the time: I was thinking about weightlessness—how to create a form that feels both grounded in material yet liberated from it. I was reflecting on the body’s relationship to gravity, and the ways in which we can use material to evoke levity, gesture, and breath.
An interesting feature that’s not immediately noticeable: Up close, you can see subtle textures—delicate imprints that suggest movement, like echoes of the body that shaped it. The surface has absorbed and held on to the traces of my process. These details give the piece a quieter, more intimate dimension beyond its initial scale and presence.
How the work reflects your practice as a whole: This body of paper works connects back to my earlier two-dimensional paintings from over a decade ago. The process of layering, transferring, and pouring stains parallels the momentum of my action painting practice, carrying forward the same energy and physicality into a new form. It speaks to my ongoing exploration of transformation, where gesture becomes embedded in material, and where painting and sculpture blur into one another as living, breathing surfaces.
One song that captures the work’s essence: “Morning” by Azymuth
