09/03/2026
Here’s Lydia to inspire your feed with another installment of Frye Store Faves, the series where we ask members of our wonderful staff to choose their favorite object in the Store. Lydia has been with the Frye Art Museum for 6 years as part of the Security Team. In this role, she gets to spend extended amounts of time in the galleries with the artwork, getting to know it in a way most people don’t. “There’s a beautiful intimacy to memorizing all the details of something that this job makes possible,” she says. “Additionally, as the main staff person in the galleries, I’m also the first point of contact for visitor questions about what they see. I love discussing with a guest why they’re looking at what they’re looking at.”
Outside of work, Lydia has a multidisciplinary art practice that encompasses painting, installation, and dance. “In all aspects of my practice I’m interested in light and space, and the ways in which they can illicit specific intense emotions,” she explains. “The work may take the form of a mural, a lighting installation, or a performance, but it’s always in pursuit of drawing the viewer into a particular state of mind. In doing so, I’m creating space for emotions that often get truncated during our everyday lives and encouraging my viewers to luxuriate in them.”
When we asked Lydia to choose her favorite object in the Store, she selected something truly special. “I was drawn to the Paladium Vase by Seattle-based ceramicist Nhi Vo of Vo Ceramics,” says Lydia. “This piece has a beautiful balance of geometric and organic elements, with a glaze that shifts from warm to cool. I like the way that the light changes the appearance of the vase from metallic to lithic, making it feel mutable and alive.”
