Lilly Wei Reflects on Stephen Antonakos's Neon Proscenium at Neuberger Museum

Lilly Wei delivered remarks at a New York Studio School panel on March 20, 2018, alongside Phong Bui, Vincent Katz, Daniel Marzona, and Helaine Posner. She discussed Stephen Antonakos's work in two Neuberger Museum exhibitions: NEON- Stephen Antonakos: Proscenium and Bending Light: Neon Art 1965 to Now, both on view through June 24, 2018. Wei described Proscenium as resembling a Greek temple or monumental ruin, highlighting Antonakos's architectural sensitivity and use of neon to create spaces like chapels and rooms. She noted his pioneering extensive use of neon as an art material, distinct from other light artists of his generation. Antonakos created over 30 chapel models, with only one realized: the Chapel of the Heavenly Ladder for the 1997 Venice Biennale, where he represented Greece. Wei observed how Proscenium's forms and light activate the Philip Johnson gallery at the Neuberger, evoking human inventiveness. She connected his work to architectural examples like the theater at Priene, the Temple of Apollo at Delphi, Bernini's Colonnade in Rome, and Raphael's School of Athens. Antonakos transformed neon from garish associations into something elegant and serene, challenging conventional art boundaries with a multidisciplinary practice. His wife, Naomi Antonakos, noted his curiosity-driven process, never knowing where he would end up.