SHELLEY LAKE: A PIONEER IN DIGITAL ART
Shelley Lake is an acclaimed American digital artist, photographer, and innovator at the intersection of science, art, and technology. Recognized as a trailblazer in simulation-based new media art, her work often evokes science fiction imagery through choreographed digital scenes, blending photorealistic simulations with conceptual depth. Lake's career spans over five decades, marked by groundbreaking contributions to computer animation, fine art exhibitions, and digital restoration. Her artworks, such as Superman (2015) and Escape Artist (2020), explore themes of heroism, identity, and healing, drawing from personal experiences with loss and resilience.
EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION
Born in 1954, Lake grew up in an environment that sparked her dual interests in visual arts and technology. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in 1976, where she honed her foundational skills in fine arts. Her fascination with computing began shortly thereafter, as a computer science major at Brown University. In 1979, she obtained a Master of Science (MS) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), becoming the first female graduate of the Architecture Machine Group—now renowned as the MIT Media Lab. There, she studied under pioneers like Nicholas Negroponte and Harold Edgerton, who shaped her approach to fusing art with emerging technologies.
Lake's interdisciplinary pursuits continued later in life. She completed a Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) degree from Cleveland Chiropractic College, reflecting her interest in healing arts, and a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) from the School of Visual Arts in New York City, emphasizing holistic and global perspectives on contemporary art.
CAREER MILESTONES
Lake's professional journey began in the late 1970’s amid the nascent field of digital art. In 1982, she joined Digital Productions, a pioneering computer animation studio co-founded by John Whitney Jr. and Gary Demos. As a Technical Director, she contributed to major film projects, including choreographing scenes for The Last Starfighter (1984), an early showcase of CGI in Hollywood. This era solidified her expertise in simulation and animation, where she pushed boundaries in creating lifelike digital environments.
In 1999, Lake founded Sky Lake Studios, a facility dedicated to fine art reproduction, digital restoration, and printmaking. Serving artists, photographers, and museums, the studio emphasized museum-quality outputs, often replicating originals on traditional media like canvas or watercolor paper. This venture allowed her to bridge her technical prowess with the fine arts community, while she continued producing her own work for global exhibitions.
Her artistic practice evolved into a signature style of "intelligent interface" art—partnering with technology to generate immersive, narrative-driven images that blur reality and fiction. Works like Polly Gone (1987) and Son of Man (2017) exemplify this, incorporating elements of portraiture, landscape, and surrealism. Lake's process is deliberate and autobiographical, often informed by personal losses, such as family members' battles with breast cancer, which inspired pieces exploring escape, transformation, and empowerment.
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION
Lake's innovative contributions have earned her numerous accolades, highlighting her as an award-winning figure in digital and new media art:
1984 Academy Award The Last Starfighter, Demos
1986 Clio Award Engine, STP Oil Treatment
1987 First Place Teapot, AT&T Image Contest
1987 Silver Polly Gone, Intl Film & TV Festival of NY
1989 First Place 1,000 ?’s, NICOGRAPH
2003 First Place Quaking Aspens, CIPNE
2008 First Place Monster, ArtExpo NYC
2015 First Place Think Different, OMA
2017 Image of the Year Son of Man, OCC
2017 First Place Superman, Photoshop Guru Award
2017 Artist of the Month Tai Chi, Artavita
2021 Best in Show Venus of Willendorf, OMA
Additional honors include finalist status at the Festival of the Masters (Walt Disney World) and features in prestigious publications like ARTnews, Art in America, and Computer Graphics World. In 1980, her Digital Portraits series was showcased at Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria, cementing her early influence in the field.
EXHIBITIONS AND LEGACY
Lake's artwork has been exhibited worldwide, from the Orlando Museum of Art to Times Square's Jumbotron (via HMVC in 2024) and galleries like Aldo Castillo Gallery. Her pieces are held in collections including Albertson International and Apple Computer. Recent reviews, such as in Momus (2025) and Inside Artists (2018), praise her as a "healing artist" whose work redefines contemporary expression through technology.
She is widely regarded as one of the very few women who broke into the highest levels of 1980’s computer graphics — an era overwhelmingly dominated by men — and as the artist who helped prove that computer generated imagery could be a legitimate fine-art medium, not just a technical or effects tool. Some of her early computer generated images are considered historic milestones and appear in museum collections and CGI history books alongside works by the New York Institute of Technology, the Cornell Program of Computer Graphics, and early Pixar artists.
Today, based in Los Angeles, Lake continues to innovate via her websites ShelleyLake.com and Sky Lake Studios, mentoring emerging artists while producing thought-provoking works that challenge perceptions of reality in the digital age. Her multifaceted career—as artist, technician, healer, and entrepreneur—embodies a holistic vision of creativity unbound by medium.