Alyssa Norton is an American artist living in Somerset.
Driven by process and experimentation, Norton’s poetic and innovative visual language captures subtle relationships of light, colour, texture and movement between materials.
Chiaroscuro is central to Norton’s practice. With a background in painting from Cornell University and a second degree in jewelry from the Instituto Allende in Mexico, Norton was drawn to work with metal, a medium with an intrinsic light source. Influenced by Dan Flavin and James Turrell, her debut collection merged delicate coloured perspex forms with finely crafted silver.
Early in her career, Norton’s techniques of weaving, tying, and wrapping yielded intricate compositions of metal, antique components and textiles. Her distinctive silk woven chains effortlessly traveled the body, transforming into necklaces, lariats, bracelets, belts and headpieces. Featured by Vogue and lauded by the Council of Fashion Designers of America, Norton garnered global acclaim for her transformative approach to design.
Expanding her practice, Norton has created a series of flower paintings inspired by the ever-changing colors of the English countryside. She has focused on the significance of flowers in ritual and ceremony, particularly the English rose. Interested in the relationship between painting and sculpture, Norton’s method involves using hand-pressed found flowers and cut-out silhouettes, painted with pigment extracted from their petals.