Mary Savva

Mary Savva's artistic practice centres on figurative painting, with a particular interest in themes of home, culture, and identity, and their connection to the landscape. Her paintings are deeply influenced by both the environment in which she grew up and the place where the work is created. Through this approach, Savva reinterprets these concepts within a broader context.

 

Her primary focus lies in the exploration of painting itself-its processes and techniques-rather than striving for an illusion of reality. This exploration is evident in her deliberate detachment of the subject from its background, creating a collage-like effect. She often leaves parts of the canvas unpainted, repeats images within a single painting, or uses the same image across multiple canvases as part of a series.

 

Several of her works feature Hellenistic sculptures, now housed in contexts far removed from their origins (such as museums). By presenting them as lost and displaced from their original landscape and home, they are used to symbolize the artist herself and almost become self-portraits. In Savva's practice, there is a constant transition of imagery, from ancient sculptures made in Greece, replicated in Italy, and now displayed in the British Museum, to their reinterpretation within contemporary painting.

 

Mary Savva holds a Master's in Fine Art: Painting from the Slade School of Fine Art, University College London, and a First-Class BA (Hons) in Fine Art from the University of Hertfordshire. Her work has been exhibited internationally, including in the UK, South Korea, and Cyprus. Selected group and solo exhibitions include: Artworks in Quarantine Time, Gloria Art Gallery, Nicosia (2021); To My Twenties, Old St Martins, London (2020); The Spring, The Auction Collective, London (2020); A Room of One's Own, The Koppel Project, London (2019); Paper Cuts by Kristian Day, Saatchi Gallery, London (2018); Between Spring and Seeing, Cheongju Art Studio, South Korea (2018); Sunlight Under Night Sky (solo show), Cheongju Art Studio, South Korea (2018); and the Slade School of Fine Art Degree Show, London (2016). Savva was shortlisted for the Chadwell Award and nominated for the Land Securities Award. She has also been commissioned to create six paintings for the German Gymnasium in London and nine for St John the Baptist Church in Limassol.