We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lilli Muller. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lilli below.

Lilli, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

The most meaningful projects I worked on, are the ones I am involving the community, the people around me. A long time ago, on my journey to find my voice, I shifted my drawings and sketches from 2D works to 3D sculptural pieces. Along with my process of self-discovery and connecting with the outside world, I started to include people close to me in my artmaking. Incorporating others in my process of artmaking, not only added a diverse point of view to my work, but it also had a profound impact on the participant.
This discovery of a perfect symbiosis paved the way for my future works.
Single sculptures evolved into larger installations, that you are invited to walk through, immerse yourself in, and discover.
It gave the viewer always something to relate to, to take back home with them, and thus the project continues…
My artistic path took a significant turn when I met with Louise Bourgeois, who became my mentor for many years until her passing. Under her guidance I found my artistic voice and my mission, to create a sculpture that evolve over time and yet stays timeless, moving people, fostering dialog and empower them. My current works, The Mandala Project Series, entire immersive and participatory installations are getting close to this mission; they resonate with people, opening hearts and minds, they connect people with each other and inspiring change, inside and out.
The essence of my work is about creating with the people, for the people and about the people.

Lilli, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

How I got where I am today:

It’s been a long and windy road…
I was born in Germany, in a tiny village with 200 people and all farmers, except my family.
Even in Grammar school I always painted, drew, created, glued, collected everything I could get my hands on to make stuff. Surrounded by woods, bordering the East German border practically in our backyard, with minefields and barbed wire fences, and the nearby historic town of Coburg, with medieval castles, I was deeply influenced by what I saw and experienced. My art teacher in High School took note of my talent and with the literal keys to the castle, I learned how to study drawing, light, surface, texture. I learned how to see and breathing in the old renaissance town and hundreds of years of history and tradition in Europe.
To expand my view and find my voice I traveled through the USA for a 6-month adventure, with my back pack and suitcase, only to find my new permanent home in Laguna Beach, California, where I began to experiment with various styles and methods in search of my voice. A friend introduced me to plaster casting, which became a pivotal moment in my artistic evolution. Most artists don’t really like the influence of other people in their process of artmaking. My work is hands on, tactile and deeply personal. While working with others on a project involves multiple bodies and body part casts of my participants. Each person’s body cast embodies a unique essence and radiates their energies to bring the final works to life. I was always fascinated about the multitude of perspectives, the shifting of different angles and the layering of pros and cons. Imagine all this in one piece of art, and everyone will find something to relate to and walk away with. The artwork lives on. That is what I am after.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Allow me to share about my resilience:

Here is how I would describe it in a single sentence:
I am an artist, a single mother dedicated to raising my daughter, a businesswoman to support a family while sustaining continuous artmaking, and a woman of my own, who knows that this path demands all of my energy and inner strength. Navigating all these roles over the years has required enormous resilience.
Throughout my journey, I’ve created numerous significant bodies of work; I exhibited in US and Europe; I received many Art Awards (national and international) and two Recognition Awards for my involvement with the community by the City of Los Angeles; I raised a beautiful, creative daughter and I’m still standing and committed to making artwork for the people, with the people and about the people around the world with my next projects.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My mission and goal driving my creative journey:

Many, many years ago I wrote down these words, that I realized much later describes everything I do in my work:

“Look, when you don’t want to see.
Listen, when you don’t want to hear.
Speak out loud, what you don’t want to say.
Walk from the outside in, to discover the inside outside.”

My work expanded over the years, but these words still ring true to what I do and why I do what I do.

“Getting people engaged in the artmaking process offers them a different awareness while mirroring their own life experiences. As I have witnessed over the years, it is no longer simply about the artwork itself, but the personal impact it has on each individual, and any further change it may cause. This inspires me to continue making art for the people, with the people, and about the people.”

Contact Info:

• Website: www.LilliMuller.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thereallillimuller/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtILo5IuqkFH3V3r_LLzKWQ

Image Credits
Lilli Muller