In all my work, the choice of medium and approach is determined by research into the subject matter, which leads to a variety of interpretive methods, each one tailored to the topic. The materials used may also be site-specific, and have included wood, plastic or litter collected from the site itself, as well as photographs, maps, and archival materials. Grounding the work in the material aspect of each site adds another dimension to my own and the audience’s intellectual understanding and emotional engagement with the site and the theme.

My most recent work (Dis)Placement; altered maps turned into paper sculptures. This work is firstly an exploration of the resonances between land (represented by maps) and clothes – in that both surround us and to some extent define us, providing us with recognisable identities, whether these are first or second-hand. The initial theme is the issue of settlement and belonging, versus forced or chosen migration and transience. The subject itself is so vast that a focus is needed, provided in this case by concentrating on the Jewish diaspora. The stories of Jewish presence in each area is hand written onto the paper sculptures. While the work is based on the experiences of one group of people, it also contains an implicit reflection on anyone’s place within a given landscape and how that can change over time.

I have worked with several different communities on important local issues eg with teachers, parents, and children on the closure of a nursery school, with volunteer litter collectors concerning beach litter, and with a park friends’ group on their feelings about changes to the park.

I have an MA in Fine Art (Site and Archive Intervention) 2010 and my artist books belong to the Tate Modern and several university library collections.

I am interested in the process of reproduction (printmaking, digital media, collage, photocopies) and also by the theme of reproduction (with reference  to biotechnology, genetics, sex and consumerism). My work is also informed by  the ethical debate surrounding biotechnology and also the relationship between image and paper engineering.

Printed images and multiples enable a process of vulgarisation, undermine the obsession with originality, so that content becomes the primary concern. The repetition of the same imagery echoes our obsession with labels and brands as assurances of quality and also, paradoxically, echoes our fears provoked by images of cloning and other genetic interventions.

I am especially interested in the idea of the imperfect edition. Traditionally a printmaker is to be congratulated on his or her skill in producing a perfect edition. I have always found this to be a very mechanical approach; after the thrill of pulling the first few prints the process is predictable, a routine. To subvert the idea of an edition is exciting and a good metaphor for the paradoxical relationship between group identity and individuality.  In the natural world we are familiar with classification along the lines of type yet on reflection every single leaf on a beech tree, as well as being true to type, is distinctly different.

I often take my starting point from commercial packaging nets that I customise in terms of structure and scale. Individual structures can then become units in a giant construction set, with the potential for endless configurations and reworkings according to context.

 Installations often start out as small units, that grow, can be subjected to systematic modifications, and colonise the space.

Larna’s practice is driven by her desire to engage with people from all walks of life, both within the UK and internationally. Larna has performed at theatre festivals in Sibiu (2006) and Bilbao (2007).

Larna has developed partnerships with schools, galleries, council officers, curators and members of the general public. Education and consultancy work clients include Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Cartwright Hall, Creative Partnerships, Artworks Creative Communities, Kala Sangam and Bradford Council.

Regional commissions include projects such as Bradford LINk’s health and social care consultation and Holmewood natural play consultation.

With paper sculpture and bookworks incorporating handmade paper Larna exploits the tactile, physical, delicate and familiar qualities of paper.