Lara Bandilla's paintings weave together multiple narratives, mostly based on autobiographical events, while combining abstract and figurative elements.
Her themes revolve around processing her family history and uncovering the metaphysical meaning of situations.
The often largescale works show an interconnected symbolism and magical-spiritual connection with nature. They transcend mere autobiography and develop a story that goes beyond personal experiences, by creating a visionary space of the universally subjective.
THE VOW
90x70cm, oil and pigment on canvas, 2023
YOU BETTER TAME THOSE HORSES
The frequently painted horses symbolize life
itself - as a force that must be mastered.
Bandilla breaks down a post-apocalyptic world into layers and snapshots. Following them, maps of cities, rivers, stars, and imaginary spaces unfold - a poetic approach to a non-place. The world Bandilla depicts is made up of elements of language, the surreal, and everyday life that continually dissolve, only to reform in the next step. The artist breaks down her images into different levels to get a different view of the streets and the world....
neues deutschland, Januar
...the dreamlike pictures include areas of near-photographic realism, but also sections where the image seems to melt — more in the manner of Gerhard Richter’s photo-derived blurs than Salvador Dali’s drippy surrealism...
Mark Jenkins, Washington Post
...strong impressions by Lara Bandilla...between magical realism and deliberate abstraction...especially emotional and incisive are the works in which she narrates of her own family history....
Elisa Krooß, Westdeutsche Zeitung
The impression of light and movement is characteristic for the series of paintings, in which the painter confronts the viewer with a "different reality"... The white light makes the street alignments and squares appear otherworldly...the fusion of disparate motifs, the plunging lines, the deliberate blurring, and the dramatic contrasts of light and dark make it difficult to locate them, which is not at all Bandilla's intention. "I want to capture the moment of timelessness," explains the painter, whose paintings are reminiscent of film sequences...
Hannah Styrie, Kölner Rundschau
OH,MOTHER
Coming to terms with the confusing and traumatic experiences of childhood is the central theme of my work.
The focus is on the mother.
CHILDHOOD
I am touched by the high vulnerability of children and at the same time their natural existence in a magical world, where, at least temporarily, salvation from danger can be found.
LOSS
A series of portraits whose unifying element is a certain kind of loss in the gaze that appeals to me very much.
EXHIBITIONS
IMPRINTS, solo exhibition, Galerie Philoart, Wuppertal, September 2023SPUREN DES MENSCHEN, group exhibition,Taith Contemporary, Vienna, 2023/ SHOW No.4, solo exhibition, WomenPaintersRoom, Berlin, 2022/ AESTHETICS OF A DISENCHANTED WORLD, group exhibition, Goerz Höfe, Berlin, 2022Curated by Lara Bandilla, participating artists: Marc Bodie, Monique Schumacher, Angharad Taris, Carys Evans, Wolfgang Sinwel, Julie Davis, David A. Kilvington, Àgnes Zászkaliczky, Shaun Brosnan, Mark Goldsworthy, Kathrin Landa, Ulrike Dornis, Marlies Ziemke, Annette Selle, Mark Thompson, Caroline Corleone, Lothar Düver, Lara Bandilla/ MAKE ART NOT WAR, group exhibition, Galerie Philoart, Wuppertal, 2022/ ORLANDO, group exhibition, Taith Contemporary, Vienna, 2021/ ON VIEW, solo exhibition, Galerie Philoart, Wuppertal, 2021/ DAS FREMDE IN UNS, group exhibition, Galerie Philoart, Wuppertal, 2020/ DER AUGENBLICK, solo exhibition, Taith Contemporary, Vienna, 2019/ EDEN, solo exhibition, Galerie Philoart, Wuppertal, 201/ ON THE ROAD, solo exhibition, Galerie Steiner, Berlin, 2017/ OF TIME AND LIGHT, solo exhibition, IA&A Hillyer Art Space, Washington DC, USA, 2013/ ARCHAICS, solo exhibition, Kunstverein Hattingen, 2012/ STUDIO EXHIBITION, solo exhibition, Studio Schaperstrasse, Berlin, 2011/ ZEIT LICHT, solo exhibition, Christuskirche, Cologne, 2011/ LICHT SCHWEBE RAUM, group exhibition, Ballhaus im Nordpark, Düsseldorf, 2011/ TRACING PENTHESILEA, solo exhibition, Galerie Golkar, Bonn, 2010/ AFFORDABLE ART FAIR AMSTERDAM/ SHANGHAI ART FAIR/ GOOD AMERICA - BAD AMERICA, Museum Walter, Augsburg/ KUNSTVEREIN NEUEHRENFELD KÖLN/ WELCOME TO PARADISE, Megahertz Records/ PHANTASTISCHE KREATUREN, Württembergisches Palais, Regensburg/ WASSER, Museumsnacht Regensburg/ SALON, Salon DÓrpheé, Regensburg/ THE TIME OF THE DOGS, Kulturspeicher, Regensburg/ PENTHESILEA - THE UNGUIDED WILL, Kleist Museum, Frankfurt an der Oder/ SOGNANDO DIO, Centro Pellegrini, Rome