1/2 Painting

Leila Lallali, born in Luxembourg to an Algerian mother and Luxemburgish father, is a self-taught artist based in Berlin, Germany. She has been painting since childhood, though a period of study in fashion design in London and a subsequent career in acting in New York City caused her to momentarily step away from her practice. Following many years in theatre and film, she has returned to her first love: painting. Lallali’s work centers on everyday objects and themes — particularly food, fashion, and broader notions of consumption. Her paintings are frequently infused with humor and subtle irony. By painting her objects of desire rather than acquiring them, she seeks to transform personal longing into artistic inquiry, tempering the urge to consume and instead inviting reflection on material culture and the nature of want. Her work attempts to expose the shallowness of today’s interactions — how the performance of consumption, and the display of having consumed, is often valued more than the experience itself. By drawing attention to these dynamics, she invites viewers to consider what might be seen, felt, or learned if we were more attentive, and if we allowed experience to take precedence over display. At the same time, she seeks to question the deeper emotional currents that drive these behaviours — the insecurities, desires, and unmet needs that so often sit beneath the surface. In doing so, her work suggests that acts of consumption or performance are rarely just about the things we purchase or show; they are frequently expressions of something more vulnerable, more human, and far less visible. Leila’s compositions move fluidly between figuration and abstraction, privileging intuition over strict representation — much like the imaginative world of childhood, where nothing needs to make perfect sense. Her work is characterized by vivid colours and often incorporates the written word, blending text and image to deepen the emotional and humorous resonance of each piece. Through her practice, she seeks to create a counterpoint to the often somber realities of contemporary life, offering instead moments of levity, celebration, and reflection. Ideally, her paintings incite amusement, provoke a smirk, and spark a moment of playful reflection.