Lot 211 - Lily Buchanan - Wondering

ARTIST INFO

About 

The everyday objects around me – such as a wafer biscuit, a batman toy or a rubber glove– are charged with memories making them active; they are my humorous companions and   totems to my daily existence. In my work I attempt to embody these objects, reliving the memories that they trigger whilst exploring their own potential consciousness.  There is one object in my work that is less   mundane; the human heart. For me, the organic heart works as a symbol for   desire – it is a place where I can store all my desires. Its presence is   inspired by the mysterious ‘sixth sense’ of the medieval Cluny Tapestries, expressed through the words ‘A Mon Seul Desir’ which translates as ‘to my only desire’. Stemming from a love of the illustrated books   read to me as a child, 80’s mockumentaries and iconic pop lyrics, I paint landscapes from a mix of memories and my contemporary surroundings. Working in a range of media from pencil, oil, gouache and watercolour my aim is to create transformative settings where my objects can lead a life of their own. Creating these flights of fantasy is my way of dealing with the world. Through animating everyday ephemera and the symbol of the human heart, I am exploring themes of desire, mischief, melancholy and the miraculous in the mundane. 

Education 

MA in Fine Art - City & Guilds of London Art School, Diploma in Drawing - The Royal Drawing School, BA in Illustration at Central Saint Martins College 

Select Exhibitions/Awards 

Roger De Grey Drawing prize at City & Guilds of London Art School  

Patrons Prize at The Royal Drawing School 

Statement about AOAP Submitted Artwork   

In these four drawings, the wafer boy's desires float beneath them - symbolised by the hearts below them - but they are consumed and complexed by the water around them. The works explore the varying complex emotions I feel when reaching for the things I desire and the creative process of breaking through to an idea or a state of mind. Life can feel freeing, full of wonder but can also feel so overwhelming and overpowering, freezing me in this way. The final drawing shows the wafer boy content in the water. In this small moment happiness is found. 

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