Artist Statement

Graham’s work investigates space, memory, and identity to playfully negotiate a narrative that blurs the line between past, present, and imagined. By reinterpreting metaphor, mythology, folklore, and stories—both fact and fiction—Graham’s practice explores what is real and what is constructed. Their multidisciplinary approach combines printmaking, sculpture, and installation to create works that challenge perceptions and evoke a sense of a time that once was, or never has been.

Inspired by surroundings—both public and private, urban and domestic—Graham’s work is deeply reflective of their upbringing in post-conflict Northern Ireland. Childhood memory, identity, and displacement form the foundation of their investigations, raising questions of “belonging” and “home.” Drawing from personal experience, Graham reflects on division and loss, exposing the emotional and psychological complexities of space and identity.

Using simple shapes and symbols, Graham imparts metaphor and narrative to connect personal and collective experiences of urban spaces. Print and sculpture combine to create a dialogue between objects, examining the liminal spaces between being and becoming. Installations, both once expansive and intimate, invite viewers to question ownership, vulnerability, and their own relationship to space and memory.

Graham’s practice embodies fleeting, constructed, and repressed emotions, addressing social and political issues such as segregation, identity, and loss. Through storytelling, there is a juxtaposition of symbolism with playful narratives, exploring themes of growth—physical, mental, and metaphorical. While deeply rooted in personal experience, the work resonates with broader social and cultural contexts. It is both a response and an act of hope: breaking down barriers, fostering understanding, and envisioning change.