About

Lea Kampff is a 24 year old non-binary Irish artist based between Kildare and Dublin. They are currently completing a BA in Fine Art Painting at the National College of Art and Design. Their practice is a studio-based one that focuses on painting and image making, as well as writing.

Kampff has a focused yet explorative practice, one that throughout their studentship has led to being awarded a 7 month student residency in the Peer Studios in the RHA Gallery in 2022, where their practice expanded and began to involve collaboration but most importantly writing, after discovering that discussion and language is a vital part of artmaking for them. During this time period they took part in two group exhibitions, SHIFT in Unit 44, Kirkos and Mesh/Mogall in A4 Sounds, the latter of which they took on a curatorial role.

Their work balances outside of the literal and has personal connections to queer experience. The image-making and paintings flow between abstract landscape and self portraiture. The writing engagements then fight with and marry to the imagery, opening portals of beauty in the aporic existence of struggle and complex blends of the whole.

Their recent work in the final year of their BA has been towards the NCAD Works 2024 show, and their graduation showcase titled “Dysphorum” serves as culmination of their previous works, coalescing their multi-disciplinary approaches to artmaking. From which, “Quickened Breath of being Lost” was purchased by the OPW for the State Art Collection.