SAND ANIMATION ARTIST

Hello! I’m Charlene Lanzel… It's been more than 14 years since I launched my sand animation business, back in February 2011, and so much has happened since then.

I've created over 100 custom sand animations for corporate and private clients. I use a light box, sand and my hands to create fluid emotional stories, synced to a unique musical soundscape. These sand animations are simultaneously projected large screen for live audiences to experience, or filmed in HD for your live or virtual event.

I've done animations for Cirque du Soleil, MTV News, Travel & Leisure, Doodle 4 Google, GE Healthcare, TBS Network and many more. I've performed at amazing venues, like Caesar's Colosseum in Las Vegas, The Fillmore in Philly, The Smithsonian in D.C. and Jazz at Lincoln Center in NYC. I've traveled to international locations, like Hong Kong, Amsterdam, Mexico City, Playa Del Carmen, Berlin, Montréal and all over the USA. I've performed at events featuring: Jordin Sparks, Brené Brown, Beau Lotto, Nili Brosch, John Mayer, Wynton Marsalis and The Roots. I’ve also synced my sand animations to the inspirational poetry of Theo Wilson, Denver Poet Laureate Bobby LeFebre and others.

It's been a very exciting journey and I'm really looking forward to sharing new things here. So... Stay Tuned! Thanks for visiting. I look forward to creating a custom sand animation just for you.

BASED IN LOS ANGELES, CA

Watch my sand art VIDEOS!

Services

*In April 2022, I launched my very own ethical sand art clothing and product line, bringing my art to the fashion world. My original sand art designs are now being produced on high-end sustainable clothing and accessories. For more information, read this blog: WEAR SAND ART… then visit my Le Galeriste shop. You can find even more products designed with my sand art at Redbubble!

LIVE Sand Animation Performance

Charlene Lanzel's sand animation, sometimes known as sand art, sand drawing or sand painting, is beautiful to look at but lasts only in the moment. It is sand storytelling that makes life and time flow by, right before your eyes. A popular new trend in performance art, sand art is a form of live sand painting which evolved from earlier sand animation films. Live sand art performances are very dynamic and require the artist's presence to happen.

Sand Artist | Charlene Lanzel performing LIVE at a Morning Session.

Charlene Lanzel’s projected, live, storytelling performances explore the relationship between real and virtual spaces, and create emotionally immersive environments which provide both entertainment and instruction. Her live sand animations are projected large scale onto a mega screen, using the latest in digital technologies, and synced to a live or recorded soundscape. 

Sand Artist | Charlene Lanzel's art is created live onstage, where people can watch the artist doing her performance in a darkened room. A video camera is positioned over the illuminated glass tabletop, upon which the artist creates sand magic. Sand scattered on a light box is formed and reformed into ever changing shapes and images that tell visually powerful stories. Charlene creates these fluid illustrations from memory, for large audiences, with an overhead camera instantaneously projecting onto a large screen for the audience to see.

Sand Artist | Charlene Lanzel performing LIVE at a Summit Meeting.

Charlene Lanzel's sand performances are choreographed, rehearsed and synched to a dramatic soundscape, which Charlene creates to enhance the mood. Music accompanies the entire process as the sand artist’s hands follow the rhythm.

Her hands move slowly or quickly, as the elegant artwork is created, which challenges and motivates in a captivating way. The audience amazes at the decisiveness in her hands, since the sand artist's hands can always be seen creating in the projection. The results of the sand animator's process are unique.

Sand Animation is a practice which uses the visual and aesthetic properties of sand to create a live animated image. Sand is a fluid material and its grains settle by chance, creating living images made of a single texture. Sand art storytelling makes life and time flow by, magically, in front of your eyes. Guests will be interested and absorbed, and will certainly be talking about this wow factor at your next event! 

Custom Sand Animation VIDEOS

"In every grain of sand there is a story."

Charlene Lanzel’s sand animation videos are a refreshing way to tell your story at a live event or virtual meeting. An .mp4 video of your custom sand animation can be created in HD for large screen viewing at your corporate event, gala, dinner, party, wedding, trade show or virtual event. Your video story will be filmed in real time, but can be sped up in post production, for quicker viewing. Include branding, logos, memorable experiences, portraits, or beautiful scenes and themes of your choice… all synched to a custom musical soundscape. Please provide all information for the project at least 3 weeks prior to the date needed.

See SERVICES for more information on custom animations.

PICK (1) COLOR: B/W, Gold, Cocoa, Red, Pink, Cran, Purple, Blue, Aqua or Green…

ADD a SPLASH of a 2nd color!

Sand Art Storytelling

What’s Your Story? How do you feel? We are all storytellers…

It seems that human needs, in order of importance, are: nourishment, storytelling, love, then shelter. Storytelling predates writing. Early stories were usually oral, with gestures and expressions. Symbols were painted on cave walls, to help the storyteller remember what happened. Tree trunks, sand, rocks and leaves were also utilized. Throughout history, images were carved, scratched, painted, printed and inked onto pottery, sand tablets, stones, leaves, skins, cloth, paper, silk, canvas, film… and eventually created using today’s modern technologies. 

Storytelling connects with people on an emotional level. “What if…?” opens the door to wonder. Good storytellers say what they know and how they feel from a unique perspective, and get the audience to have that same feeling. They have something important to share with the world. A therapeutic or cathartic sequence of events, unfolding through time. 

Storytellers are regarded as healers, leaders, spiritual guides, teachers, secret keepers & entertainers. Through art, song, poetry, chanting & dance, storytelling can bridge cultural, language and age barriers. It can be used as a method to teach ethics, values, and to discuss cultural norms, as well as differences. Stories tap into our existing knowledge, create cultural bridges and motivate toward solutions.

Sand Artist | Charlene Lanzel tells the story of The Green Genie. This is a live performance, shot in one take, from memory.

So… What’s your story? A rough idea. “What if…?” 

Who are the characters? Set up your Hero’s world! 

What happens at the beginning, middle & end of the journey?

Identify the story’s emotional content. Is there confrontation? Has the world turned upside down?

How is the Hero or World transformed?

Storytelling teaches important principals to live a good life. It is a language of images, with ideas and meanings. Stories engage audiences to remember, and invite an empathic experience by imagining fresh possibilities. They teach respect, through the practice of attentiveness, which can lead to a respect for all life, and to value interconnection. As a way to pass knowledge from one generation to the next, sand art storytelling plays an important roll in the reasoning process and in convincing others. It is an approach to resolving conflicts, addressing issues and facing challenges.

Sand Art Videos

Wedding Sand Art

Add special uniqueness to your wedding reception or dinner. Sand animation is a new, different and exciting way to tell your love story...

Sand Artist | Charlene Lanzel creates a memorable sand art story just for you, which adds a luxury element to your wedding event. Include portraits and shared experiences drawn in the sand, performed to a custom musical soundscape. Your love story comes alive with this unique live animation!

Charlene offers 3 options for live wedding sand art to suit your budget: Ambient, Combination (or) Bespoke.

1) 10 minute Live AMBIENT WEDDING: This is the most economical option. Charlene performs a love story from her stock animation “Love & Nature” with the characters personalized to look like the wedding couple. (2-3 weeks lead time)

2) 10 minute Live COMBINATION WEDDING: This is a popular option. Choose scenes from Charlene's stock imagery storyboards. Did you meet at the beach, city or countryside? Choose your scenery, choose from personalized wedding scenes, and add a sentiment at the end. (2-3 weeks lead time)

3) Live BESPOKE WEDDING: This is the best option. Use your imagination! Tell your completely customized story in sand with scenes of your choice, including: portraits, beautiful scenes, memorable experiences, and more. At least 7 minutes custom animation is recommended to tell your story. (3+ weeks lead time)

Charlene's sand art can be performed LIVE at your reception or dinner...

and/or

4) a SAND ART VIDEO of an Ambient, Combination (or) Bespoke animation can be created for large screen viewing at the event. An HD digital video file (.mp4) of your sand animation includes a custom musical soundtrack which synchs with the artwork.

Please provide all information for the project at least 2-3 weeks prior to the performance or date needed. A signed contract, along with 50% deposit, are required to hold your date and start your custom project, prior to the 2 week deadline.

Choose a sand color to match your wedding theme! 

PICK (1) COLOR: B/W, Gold, Cocoa, Red, Pink, Cran, Purple, Blue, Aqua or Green…

Reserve Charlene today for your wedding video or event!

WHY Sand Art?

Watching sand animation come to life, in real time, has an extraordinary effect on the audience. Audience members are uncontrollably drawn into Charlene’s seemingly real world made up of sand characters, trees, mountains and seas. Live sand art is a magical art form that charms. Creating images conjured seemingly effortless, like an oracle or a magician, Charlene's hands skate on glass like a kind of dance. The moving sand creates continuously fluid and poetic figures with original storytelling. Old and young watch and listen together, and all is in harmony, because they all share the same emotions. A visual language is created that transcends linguistic barriers. Drawings are in perpetual transformation which excite imagination, surprise and allow abrupt changes of tone and unexpected images.

Charlene Lanzel can perform her sand animations live at: gala events, in theaters, at festivals, opening or closing ceremonies, at corporate events, conventions, trade shows, weddings, dinner parties, art events and more. Charlene’s sand art can be integrated into: dance, concerts, advertising, storytelling, video and television projects. Bespoke performances can also be custom created to existing compositions or original musical scores. Custom live presentations or videos can include your own imagery, logos and themes.

The powerful impact of sand animation is indescribable. Adding special uniqueness to any event, sand animation is almost unbelievable. It is a new, different and exciting way to communicate a message. Sand storytelling comes alive in this imaginative poetic expression.

Sand Artist | Charlene Lanzel keeps audiences spell-bound by the twists and surprises that follow every sweep of her hands.

Reserve Charlene today for your next project or event!

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SHOUTOUT LA Interview 2

A new SHOUTOUT LA interview!

“Hi Charlene, how has your work-life balance changed over time?”

Sand Artist | Charlene Lanzel