We Shall Not Sleep, Though Poppies Grow Painting

Liffey Joy was born in the UK in 1990 and received her BA in Fine Art from the Michaelis School of Fine Art in 2011. Her work focuses on materiality and makes uses of multiple media, with the strong inclusion of chemicals as well as acrylic, ink and salt. She places emphasis on the importance of materials and veers towards using those with unpredictable characteristics; attempting to harness their volatile natures. Growth and decay feature in the way she uses these media and this echoes the changing nature of the substances used to show these opposing forces. By using organic processes and centering on natural subject matter these works highlight the universal condition of vulnerability by showing how, when all is said and done, we are all just products of the earth. Her work is mainly monochromatic. This contrast of light and dark is an important element in her work; both in terms of colour but also in relation to density of material. This interplay between heavier areas of material contrasting against quieter spaces aims to reflect the highs and lows of human emotion.