My name is Zara Lyness, welcome to my home page.

I am an Irish mixed media visual artist based in Northern Ireland. I have had the privilege of a multi-disciplinary university experience that has developed into a diverse artistic practice. I make sculptural objects and performance, often combining both. The value and significance of the objects and materials (implied and perceived) are underlying motives in the forms I make. My methods often  involve casting and repetition, working on themes of identity, permission, interaction and a lowering of barriers, allowing the viewer a space to recognise some element in the work and perhaps recollect something that connects with it. 

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I use a variety of materials in the studio ranging from linen to porcelain, the project theme give direction to the tactics I employ. I enjoy the malleability of clay as well as the tactile quality before and after firing. Time is an important element in my practice in both the execution of material processes and in relation to performance art. Gathering memories over time shapes out lives.  In sharing recognised symbols and stories we connect, accessing our own personal history to make sense of new experiences. Sometimes by focusing on the small things we gain a better understanding of the who and where we are.

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An important aspect of my work, both in solo and group projects, is to create a sense of inclusion for the viewer that encourages further investigation rather than disengaging the public.

CONTACT ME

Pollen Studios and Gallery, 37 Queen Street, Belfast, BT1 6EA

2016

2018

Kindly funded by the Arts Council fof Northern Ireland