Lara Gallagher’s practice explores the body as a threshold between the material and the immaterial, the visible and the unseen. Working primarily in graphite, the French-British artist creates layered drawings in which the figure is formed, disrupted and reconfigured, resisting any fixed or singular definition. Her work moves between anatomical reference and abstraction, drawing on biology, psychology, spirituality, theology and pagan traditions to consider what lies beneath, beyond and within the body.
Through processes of superimposition, erasure and accumulation, Gallagher’s figures multiply, fragment and dissolve, occupying shifting states of presence and absence. Some bodies appear held within constraining structures, while others expand into rhythmic, almost hypnotic fields. Across the work, the figure becomes a site of transition, where the boundaries between inner and outer, self and other, physical and intangible begin to blur.
Based between London and France, Gallagher has exhibited widely in the UK and internationally, with recent presentations across London, Madrid, Luxembourg and Sheffield. Her practice continues to develop through larger-scale graphite works, exploring multiplicity, containment and transformation through a sustained, meditative drawing process.
Are you self-taught, or did you undertake formal artistic training?
My practice has developed through a combination of formal study and independent exploration. After an international education in the South of France, I moved to London to pursue art studies. However, much of my approach has evolved through a self-directed process, refining ideas through repetition, experimentation and sustained studio work.
How would you define your visual language or conceptual approach?
My work centres on the body as both a physical structure and a psychological and symbolic site. I am interested in how identity is shaped through anatomy, perception, memory and internal states, and how we exist simultaneously as biological, emotional and spiritual beings.
Visually, this takes the form of superimposed bodies, often repetitions of the same figure, layered and intertwined. These overlapping forms suggest multiple aspects of the self coexisting at once, blurring the boundary between singular identity and multiplicity. I explore dualities such as internal and external, mental and physical, human and spiritual, not as opposites, but as interdependent forces within a larger system.
Can you describe your creative process from conception to completion?
The process begins with a conceptual tension, often rooted in the body, its structure, its limits or its capacity for transformation. I begin by drawing a figure, then repeatedly rework and superimpose it, allowing forms to shift, fragment and evolve.
From there, I build layers of shading, line and abstracted shapes that both construct and destabilise the figure. Working in graphite, the image moves between anatomical reference and abstraction. This process reflects my understanding of the self as something fluid, formed through accumulation, distortion and repetition rather than fixed definition.
Does narrative, symbolism or storytelling play a role within your work?
Narrative operates in a non-linear way. The repeated body becomes a symbolic structure, representing psychological states, memory and transformation, as well as the tension between physical containment and internal expansion.
Rather than conveying a singular story, the work functions as a field of associations. Fragmentation and layering evoke shifting internal states, allowing the viewer to move through multiple interpretations relating to both personal and collective human experience.
Which artists have most influenced you historically or contemporarily, and why?
I am interested in artists who destabilise the body as a fixed or purely anatomical form. Ibrahim El-Salahi’s ability to fragment and reconstruct the figure into a symbolic, almost linguistic system has been particularly influential, especially in how it connects the human form to spiritual and cultural traditions.
Similarly, Kiki Smith’s work has shaped my understanding of the body as permeable and transformative. She approaches anatomy not as something closed, but as something that can hold psychological, mythological and spiritual meaning. In both practices, the body becomes a site of transformation rather than a fixed representation.
What personal, cultural or environmental influences shape your practice?
My work is informed by human sciences, particularly psychology and anatomy, as well as spiritual, theological and pagan traditions. I am interested in how these systems attempt to understand the body and the self, whether through empirical observation or symbolic meaning.
These influences come together in my view of the body as a site of memory and transformation, where biological processes, internal experience and belief systems intersect. The work explores how identity is formed through these overlapping structures, both visible and invisible.
Where is your studio based, and how does the space inform your creativity?
I am based in London, where I live and work. The studio provides a focused, minimal environment that supports a slow and repetitive process. This is essential, as the work develops through gradual layering and sustained attention. Light also plays an important role, emphasising tonal shifts and the subtle transitions that define the figures.
Do you have any rituals or rhythms that anchor your studio practice?
My practice is grounded in a meditative rhythm shaped by repetition and erasure. I often begin with a loose draft, then work into it by rubbing, softening and removing material as much as adding to it, allowing the image to gradually emerge rather than imposing it fully formed.
I tend to work at night, when the atmosphere feels quieter and more permeable. There is a sense that perception shifts, that the boundary between the physical and the immaterial becomes thinner. This time allows for a more intuitive and introspective process, where ideas surface more freely and the work can develop in a more fluid, less controlled way.
What bodies of work or projects are you currently developing?
I am currently expanding my graphite practice into larger-scale drawings, allowing for more complex forms of multiplicity and increasingly dense overlapping figures. These works push the idea of the body further, fragmenting, repeating and extending it across the surface.
Alongside this, I am developing figures that appear contained or trapped within various defined shapes, introducing a tension between organic form and imposed structure. I am also working on larger compositions that are more expansive and hypnotic, drawing more explicitly on spiritual and symbolic imagery. Across all of these works, the body remains central, continuously distorted, reconfigured and used as a vehicle to explore transformation and layered states of being.
Where can collectors encounter or acquire your work?
My work is presented through exhibitions and is also accessible via my website and Instagram, where I share current projects and available pieces. Collectors can enquire directly through these platforms or via studio contact.
For more information, visit laragallagher.org
