VIRTUAL LIGHT

June 20th - August 30th

LADY HENZE || VIRTUAL LIGHT

Strike-Slip Gallery is proud to present Virtual Light, a deeply personal solo exhibition by Britt Henze, on view from June 20 to August 31.

Shaped by memory, recovery, and a profound love for San Francisco, Virtual Light explores imagined cityscapes born from survival and renewal. Influenced by Gerhard Richter’s view that “painting has nothing to do with language,” Henze offers a visual abstract diary rooted in lived experience.

“I love the City as much as I have ever loved anything or anyone, " the artist states. "San Francisco didn't just save me, it gave me a second chance.”

Born from the ashes of addiction, this body of work chronicles the artist’s journey from homelessness and near-death to healing and creative resurgence.

The works are richly layered with acrylic, ink, and spray paint, capturing textures of rotting wood, concrete, lichen, fog, and neon glow, depicting a cityscape where humanity and nature coalesce

The exhibition marks a significant evolution in Henze’s practice: a first foray into figurative work, synthesized through memory, photography, and an intuitive handling of surface and light. From hand-painted signs to weathered facades overtaken by flora, the paintings are at once speculative and nostalgic - an homage to overlooked beauty and the layered histories embedded in urban decay.

Virtual Light invites viewers to look again, more closely, more kindly, at what is already here. In these works, San Francisco is both subject and collaborator: a living, breathing organism that shelters stories, heals wounds, and glows with unexpected magic.

Make it

“You can only express in words what words are capable of expressing—what language can communicate. Painting has nothing to do with that. Art is the highest form of hope. It makes no sense to expect or claim to 'make the invisible visible,' or the unknown known, or the unthinkable thinkable.” -Gerhart Richter

For years, I have struggled to convey how much San Francisco means to me. It borders on embarrassing; I love it as much as I have ever loved anything or anyone…

LADY HENZE CATALOG

LADY HENZE CATALOG

We invite you to explore the online catalog of Lady Henze’s newest collection. For inquiries or additional information, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us via email.