Working in photography and video over the last few years, German-born artist Heike Liss finds meaning in the commonplace, and imbues the recurring events of day-to-day life, and its often banal rituals that signify the passage of time with poetic resonance. Part diarist and part instinctual recorder, she seeks out the universal aspects of human experience in varied socio-cultural and personal situations and expressions.

In home/away (2002-2005), Liss’ current series of thirty color photographs on view question the extent individuals define themselves in relation to “home” and explores what that means in a world where so many people live transplanted lives. The series is comprised of details of hotel rooms taken over the last four years during the artist’s travels back and forth between California and Europe. According to the artist, “these images, as portraits, speak of a sense of a lack of belonging: in a place, in a time, in the world.”