Artist’s journey from Wales to Waipapa Taumata Rau

Elam School of Fine Arts is a far cry from the Welsh village of Old Colwyn where Lara Pyves grew up, but creating has always been a part of her story. She recalls a childhood brimming with artistic experimentation, and says creativity runs in the family:

“On my dad’s side, my great-grandparents were both in the performing arts. I definitely have creative genes, and I’ve done art my entire life!”

Spurred by an early success – at seven-years-old she came second in the Urdd Eisteddfod national youth competition for her finger painting of a choir – she pursued art through primary school and into high school. When it came to choosing a degree, continuing the theme was a no brainer.

“It didn’t occur to me to not do art. I assumed if I enjoy studying something, it will lead to a job I enjoy.”

After spending a gap year in New Zealand following school, Lara decided to combine her love of the outdoors with her love of art, and made the move down under permanent. She enrolled in a Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Arts conjoint degree at the University of Auckland, citing the natural environment as a key factor for the decision.  

“I love the weather; it’s so much better here than in the UK,” she shares.

“This is the perfect country for the outdoors, because it’s so compact – from Auckland I can literally ski, hike, climb, and surf. It feels like home, but with better weather!”

Now in her third year of study, she has experimented with multiple different mediums, from sculpture and weaving to performance and painting. Through this process she has established a preference for working with a variety of art forms, rather than focusing on one specific form.

“I like to use different mediums depending on what I think will best convey the ideas in my head,” she explains. “I’m a history major and I’ve figured out a methodology – a way of creating art – where I ground my ideas and my artwork in the context of my surroundings. I find it makes it a lot richer.” 

Lara was able to apply this method in relation to nature when she won the 2025 Liu Shiming Arts Scholar Award. Funded by the Liu Shiming Arts Foundation, the award supports students to create a project using ceramics or sculpture. Interested in exploring the relationship between her body and the natural environment, she created a hollow clay sculpture of her head, filled with resin and installed on a balcony surrounded by bush (pictured above).

“Where is the line between humans and the environment? How do we distinguish between the two when there is overlap? Do I fit into this whenua? The conclusion I came to was interesting,” she says.

“Being on a balcony surrounded by nature, but not directly in nature, shows that while I can find a place here and connect to the environment, I’m not connected to the whenua – I can’t be, because I’m not from here.”

Support from the Liu Shiming Arts Foundation enabled the creation of this intricate work and allowed her to create freely, without the limitations of cost.

“It made a huge difference in what I was able to do. Sculpture and casting is one of the more expensive art forms and the scholarship really opened up doors for me with the possibility of creating something costly. I was able to make the work I wanted to make without worrying about the price. That was quite liberating.” 

Lara is continuing to grow her portfolio and currently has weaving on display at Cocker & Son Gallery in Mount Albert as part of a group exhibition. Earlier this year her weaving was displayed at Titirangi’s Te Uru Contemporary Gallery alongside work from other Elam students, in an exhibition celebrating traditional Māori weaving techniques. 

With her first solo show planned for later this year, Lara hopes to maintain the momentum as she finishes her studies in 2027. After that, she is keeping her options open – but art will be in the picture no matter what:

“I’ll be in New Zealand, maybe working as an artist, maybe doing a postgraduate diploma in teaching, and definitely working on my own practice. I love making things!”