Nerys Mathias is an artist who works with photography, film, sculpture, installation and painting.
Since lockdown her practice has been on hold, however she is currently emerging from hibernation. Through the fallow years she has continued making with painting birds, learning silversmithing and is trying to make peace with a garden..... Her projects prior to lockdown include “The Backdrop Paintings” - exploring the relationship of “selfies”, painting and portraiture. “Selfie Disrupter” - provides an alternative to the selfie by taking traditional portraits with hand painted backdrops. “Touched Up” -the resulting images of exquisite, dying flowers, hand gestures and darkness invite the viewer to be consumed with western culture's complex response to age and mortality. This led to the “Pencil Test” film that is toured with Empire II that started its journey at the Venice Biennale 2017 and finished in Oaxaca, Mexico at MACO 2019.
"Eye eye" - a small sculpture shown in "Minisucule" a group exhibition at the Venice Biennale won the Mniscule Art Award, chosen by by a panel of judges including Joanne Shurvell / FORBES.COM, London; Luca Berta & Francesca Giubilei / VENICE ART FACTORY, Venice; Vera Pilpoul / Independent Art Curator, Tel Aviv;Edoardo Cimadori / VAP, Venice; Laura Cornejo / Art historian, writer and independent curator, Barcelona; Laura Omacini, Marta Naturale & Chiara Enzo / Venice Art Academy, Venice; Sara Faith & Paul Carter Robinson / ARTLYST International, London.
Nerys Mathias was born in Wales and lives in East Sussex whilst still working in London. She achieved her Professional Doctorate in Fine Art at the University of East London in 2015.
Covid-19, lockdown and artist support pledge
RCA Hidden 2020
Eye Eye – Venice Biennale 2019
“Mine” -Cross Lane Projects
How to make a Polite Protest by creating a short film
The Backdrop Paintings
Selfie Disrupter – the images
Selfie Disrupter
Self portraits as Patriarchal Painters, 2007
Residencies at ArToll 2012+2014
The Pencil Test, 2016
Treasure, 2009
CSM, Escapist Magazine, 1998
MA Show, Byam Shaw, 2005
Intimacy and distance
The Nude Male – curated by Julie Cook and Nerys Mathias, 2015