Lela Harris
Lela Harris is a self taught artist, originally from Manchester but now living in Kendal, in the English Lake District. Creatively curious by nature, her work is inspired by the possibilities of different mediums, learning new techniques and exploring a wide range of surfaces; resulting in an eclectic mix of work, with a strong focus on portraiture. Harris’ emotive figurative work is driven by a desire to uncover the stories of those forgotten and marginalised by society by exploring our understanding of the day to day lives, hopes, dreams and fears of ordinary people in a bid to close the gap between past and present; and shine a light on the everyday.
Along with her recent solo exhibition at Judges’ Lodgings Museum ‘Facing the Past : Black Lancastrians’ which explores the lives of 18th Century Black Africans and Lancaster’s links to Slavery, Harris was also commissioned in 2022 by the Folio Society to produce the first illustrated edition of ’The Colour Purple’ by Alice Walker.
