Lily Yap

About me

I’m an artist based on Wadawurrung Country on the Bellarine Peninsula.

I paint as a way of getting closer to myself — using mark-making to access emotions and memories that are hard to reach or express any other way. Each mark is a form of communication. A brushstroke, a smear made with my fingers, the pressure of my hand against the canvas — these are the language I use to express what words can't quite hold: tenderness and love, anger and frustration, the quiet weight of feeling overwhelmed. The medium changes depending on what I'm trying to say — sometimes a brush, sometimes bare hands — because different feelings ask to be expressed in different ways.

I don't set out to illustrate an emotion so much as move through it. The physical act of painting becomes a way of processing, understanding, and ultimately connecting — first with myself, and then, I hope, with whoever stands in front of the work. My aim isn't to explain a feeling, but to evoke one: to offer the viewer a way in, a moment of recognition, a connection.

In my work there are often linkages to nature, trees and birds. I paint from my observation of nature and its intricate beauty. A lot of my work comes from my own memories and feelings, using marks, forms and colours to evoke emotion, both for myself and for the viewer. It’s an ongoing process of self-discovery, and something I’m still exploring and understanding through my practice.

Print release coming soon.

Sign up to be notified and get early access to limited prints!