Denise Laurinaitis is an interdisciplinary artist working in lens-based photography, alternate photographic processes and text. Her work expresses an implied narrative and explores topics of family, identity, memory and time.
Denise holds a BA from Georgetown University, a JD from Hofstra University School of Law, has studied at the International Center of Photography, and is currently pursuing an MFA at Maine Media College. She has won numerous awards, including First Place at Center for Photographic Art’s International Juried Exhibition 2024, PRC Choice Award (Directors Award) at Photographic Resource Center’s Exposure 2023, Third Place Winner at Soho Photo Gallery’s 2023 National Competition and Honorable Mention at Colorado Photographic Arts Center’s 2023 Member’s Show. She was selected as a Critical Mass Top 200 Finalist in 2023 and 2021 by Photolucida and has been featured in various publications including Lenscratch and the Boston Globe. Her work has been exhibited nationally.
Artist Statement
The fragility of time whispers to me. I am fascinated by how memory is like a ray of light that changes each day as it shines on the wall or the ground, never again to reappear identically.
With my camera and light-sensitive silver gelatin paper, I leave much to chance, ultimately giving up control of my subject. And yet I am also choosing what I want to say about love, loss, magic, freedom, pleasure and the ephemerality of it all. I aim to capture the glimmers that mark moments of calm, and stories that allow us to feel the space between reality and memory. My focus on bodies and flora smothered in striking light suggest overlooked experiences. Whether photographs, a UV printed lumen, or other media, I graciously hold time in my hands and savor it.