Mandy Lilly is a multimedia artist and sculptor whose practice is rooted in the intersection of ritual and locality. Through ceramics, paintings, and instillations they explore evolving mythologies around birth, death, transformation, and our relationship to the land we occupy. Based in the northern outskirts of Knysna, WC. South Africa, much of their work stems from the historical narratives and multicultural lore about the Knysna Forest and its surrounding landscapes. ​​
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Currently located in Baltimore, Maryland, North of Knysna was born of the idea that, generally speaking, no matter where we find ourselves, we're always just north of Knysna. Whether that be a twenty minute drive or a sixteen hour flight.
Experience
June 2024- Current
North of Knysna
Artist
Baltimore, MD. USA
Since arriving in Baltimore I have been incredibly lucky and privileged to be able to focused on setting up a home studio in order to develop my artistic practice full-time. Drawing on my experiences living abroad and my relationship to the land I occupy, I've further honed in on my interest in mythological narratives and the ritualisation of the ordinary through sculptural forms.
March 2024- May 2024
Die Tonfabrik
Artist in Residence
Swakopmund, Namibia
Under the guidance of Namibia’s only production potter, Carola Lorck, I produced a body of work in discussion with mythology, locality, and our relationships with land and history.
While learning the ins and outs of a teaching/production studio in the least densely populated country in Africa, I taught workshops on creating sculptural busts, assisted in teaching Carola’s regularly scheduled classes, and experimented in glaze making.
April 2023- February 2024
Material Things
Work/Study Intern
Washington, DC. USA
For ten months, after a temporary move back to the US, I found a place to create and learn at Material Things. In exchange for assisting in managing the ceramic studio’s clay recycling system, cleaning, and teaching beginner wheel classes, I was offered the space and support necessary to continue growing my artistic practice in a new city.
August 2017- March 2023
Gounabos Clay
Artist
Knysna, WC. South Africa
Over these six years I have developed my own artistic practice with a focus on painting and ceramics. Initially, this was a way to process my experiences in relation to working in reproductive health, but, more importantly, it became a way to engage with my wider community, my place in the country I had immigrated to, and my relationship with the land I lived on, its histories and mythologies.
Education
May 2021 - August 2023
Arizona State University
Online
BA in Art History with a focus in Religious Studies​
Sept 2008 - March 2011
Alverno College
Art Education/Therapy
Milwaukee, WI.
Exhibitions
2021
All the Other Demons in the Room
The Erika Turvey Gallery
Wilderness, WC. ZA
A conversation about birthwork, vulnerability, mental health and mythologies.