Diyar Mayil's sculptural works and performances begin with the body. Most recognizable yet mysterious, the body is highly political. She works with the themes of alienation and subtlety to explore the intersection of the human body and politics. Conceptually and materially conflating familiar with strange, gentle with perilous, she is interested in evoking associations of both comfort and discomfort.
Diyar Mayil is an interdisciplinary artist working in sculpture, installation and performance. Her work explores the public life of marginalized bodies. Comfort, discomfort, adaptation, and the acceptance of different bodies in both public and private are recurring subjects in her practice. Her work has been supported by Canada Council for the Arts, Conseil des arts de Montréal and has recently been shown at La Centrale Galerie Powerhouse, Printemps numérique and the Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery. Upcoming commitments include residency at the NARS Foundation in NYC and a Solo exhibition at Clark Centre in Montréal. She holds a BFA from Concordia University, where she has recently completed her MFA. She is the 2022 Laureate for the Claudine and Stephen Bronfman Fellowship in Contemporary Art. From Istanbul, she now lives and works in Montreal.
Diyar Mayil's residency at NARS is made possible by Canada Council for the Arts.
