Isa van Lier (Amsterdam, NL, 1996) makes ceramic sculptures, installations, paintings and drawings. With her work she conveys an all-embracing idea of softness and playfulness. Through an universal imagery of shapes and colors, she immerses the viewer in wonder. She creates playgrounds, where the childlike curiosity of the viewer is being tickled, where time stands still and the intuitive inner world is allowed to be felt.
In 2019, Van Lier spent four months in Japan as an exchange student at Tokyo Zokei University. This stay had a profound effect on her work. In particular the 'kawaii' culture of the country inspires her: a cuteness that is visible through all layers of society. In Japan she was also introduced to 'shinto animism', which believes that everything and every object has a soul. By adding personalities to the shapes in her work, she applies this philosophy herself.
The magnus opum in her young career is the fascinating work Len temple (Temple of Spring), which she made for the group exhibition Paradys (2022). Van Lier made a contemporary temple inspired by the Zen gardens of Japan, recreating the serenity and balance she found in these gardens. It was a plea for the creation of these kinds of places, which Van Lier feels are missing from the pace of everyday life in the Netherlands.
Isa van Lier acquired a BA in Fine Arts at the Royal Academy of Art (KABK), The Hague in 2020. The following year she was a nominee for the Piket Prize for Visual Arts. She has exhibited at Het HEM, Zaandam, Art Rotterdam and 3.00G gallery in Tokyo amongst others. In 2022 her work was shown at the Kunsthal in Rotterdam and at the exhibition Paradys in Oranjewoud, curated by Hans den Hartog Jager. She did residencies at EKWC, Oisterwijk and at Het HEM in Zaandam.
CV | Isa van Lier
Amsterdam, Netherlands, 1996
Education
2016-2020 BA Fine Arts, Royal Academy of Art, The Hague, The Netherlands
2019 Exchange, Tokyo Zokei University, Tokyo Japan
Awards
2021 - Nominated for the Piket Kunstprijs
2020 - Jan Roëde Award: Certificate of Excellence
Collections
Akzonobel Art Foundation, Amsterdam
Eneco, Rotterdam
Het HEM, Zaandam
Exhibitions
2023
Art Island, Galerie Fleur & Wouter, IJmuiden, NL (solo)
Sowing Seeds, Galerie Fleur en Wouter, Amsterdam, NL (solo)
2022
Painter's Painters, Galerie Fleur en Wouter, Amsterdam, NL (group)
Gallery Vriend van Bavink, Amsterdam, The Ministry of Ceramic Affairs, Amsterdam, NL (group)
Unfair, Amsterdam, NL
'FLOW', Kunsthal, Rotterdam, NL
Paradys, Oranjewoud, Friesland, NL
2021
Kerstsalon, Maaskoe Gallery, Rotterdam, NL (group)
Solo Installation, ‘Guardians of het HEM’, Permanent Collection, Zaandam, NL
Edition Weekend, Rademakers Gallery, Amsterdam, NL (group)
Art Rotterdam, Rademakers Gallery, Rotterdam (group)
Urschleim, Maaskoe Gallery, Rotterdam, NL (duo)
ALL-INN Graduates, Het HEM, Zaandam, NL (group)
2020
Tiny Art Gallery, Den Haag, NL (group)
New Horizon, Rademakers Gallery, Amsterdam, NL (group)
ZEN SUPERMARKET, Graduation Show, Koninklijke Academie voor Beeldende Kunsten, Den Haag, NL
2019
Note-to-Self, Helena van Doeverenplantsoen, Den Haag, NL (group)
one man show, ‘My Japanese Room’, 3.00G gallery, Zokei University, Tokyo, Japan
Nog Lang Niet Jarig, T’Wit, Amsterdam, NL (duo)
Belly, KABK, Den Haag, NL (group)
2018
SKÈR, performance, Charley El Ranzino, Ruigoord, NL
To Dee or Not to Dee, KABK, Den Haag, NL (group)
Home Expo 3.0, Czaar Peterstraat, Amsterdam, NL (group)
2017
Blousem, Erik’s House, Amsterdam, NL (group)
2016
Group performance and installation with SKÈR, ‘Sofie in the Jungle’Landjuweel, Ruigoord, NL
Grote Glazen Kleine Lettertjes, Mollie Chaoot, Amsterdam, NL (solo)
2015
Concerto Records store, Amsterdam, NL (solo)
Recidencies
2022
Sunday Morning EKWC, Europees Keramisch Werk Centrum
Het HEM, Zaandam
Publications
2022
Publication,‘Paradys: vijftien kunstenaars over macht en maakbaarheid’, Paradys, Oranjewoud, Heerenveen, 7 mei – 14 augustus 2022, Grytsje Klijnstra (red.), Esther Darley, Hans den Hartog Jager, Thomas van Huut en Bert Looper.
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