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Artist Leah Mariani with figurative paintings

About the artist

I tell stories about women through art. My figurative artworks explore the portrayal of womanhood in popular culture. Each series or body of work is focused on a slightly different subject or theme. Making art that is interesting as well as aesthetically pleasing is my goal.

The current series references women being put in their place or, more literally, in a box. Previously, I have reinterpreted fairy tales and mythological stories through a feminist lens to give female characters a voice. Even though many of these stories are centered on female protagonists, they are often passive participants in their own fates, like Sleeping Beauty or Medusa. When I retell these stories, I use the deconstructed tropes of the originals to reframe women as being in control of their own destinies. Th
eir futures are no longer decided by men, or in service to men, as a wife or an object. This positive spin on traditional stories gives a different perspective to the viewer.
 
The works are feminist both in content and medium. Historically I have drawn decorative patterns from bedspreads, tablecloths, doilies, and other fabrics that are traditionally considered domestic and feminine. I augment my paintings by applying patterns using mark-making, screen printing, stampmaking and linocut techniques. Just as I elevate my protagonists, these so-called “women’s crafts” are also uplifted to the level of fine art from which they have been historically excluded.

As an established artist. I have exhibited widely across Australia, including numerous solo exhibitions at venues such as SOL Gallery (Fitzroy, Victoria), Tacit Gallery (Collingwood, Victoria), and Red Gallery (Sydney, New South Wales). Group exhibitions have included presentations at Art to Art (North Balwyn, Victoria), Melbourne University (Southbank, Victoria), Gaffa Gallery (Sydney, New South Wales), among many others.

I am an award-winning artist, having won 2 awards and also been shortlisted for many prestigious awards such as the Marie Ellis Drawing Prize, Lethbridge 10,000 Small-Scale Art Award, Hornsby Art Prize, Agendo Award, and the Metro Art Prize. I have been featured about in Yen Magazine, Desktop Magazine, Art Lovers Australia, as well as others.


Last year I undertook an artist residency in France, which you can read about here. In 2019 I completed a Graduate Certificate of Visual Art at VCA. Prior to that, I completed a Diploma of Visual Arts at Box Hill Institute. I work out of my home studio in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia.

Award winning
artist

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