Us & Ours is and exhibition featuring a series of oil paintings, which explore the relationship between how we self-identify and our personal possessions. How can the objects which we surround ourselves with signify or reinforce our identity in relation to lifestyle, hobbies and interest? These works feature still life studies of personal possessions and portraiture.

On display in Chapters Cafe from 20 February - 27 March 2023.

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Laura Mae explores the relationship between identity and the psychology of our possessions and collecting. Her work consists of self-portraits exploring her identity and feelings of being an outsider which stemmed from growing up mixed-race and dual-nationality (German-American) in a majority-white area. Recently, she developed an interest in exploring why people collect, focusing on exploring collecting as an act of self-soothing or escapism.

Collecting refers to seeking, acquiring and displaying items that are of interest to an individual. Moreover, she is interested in exploring how our possessions can contribute to our identity and/or how our identity can manifest within them combining still-life and portraiture. These themes collide when intertwining social identity theory: are our interests proportional to the relationships we form with people with whom we share interests and the way that we treat others with whom we do not?

Laura Mae works most often with oil paints – taking advantage of the human quality they bring to a canvas. She is also experienced in Risograph printing and making zines in collaboration with volunteers exploring isolation and identity. Taking inspiration from artists such as Andrea Kowch, Edward Povey and Paula Rego, her works combine magic realism and melancholy utilising bright colours and presenting a ‘fairytale-esque’ atmosphere that simultaneously displays unease. She currently studies Fine Art at Staffordshire University.Chapters

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