Dauma Stirbyte was born and raised in Lithuania. She moved to Ireland in 2007, graduating from the National College of Art and Design in 2016 with a BDes (Hons). She was an international artist in residence at the London Clay Art Centre (Canada) from 2017 to 2020, where she also taught sculpture classes. In 2018 Dauma was named Best in Show at Fusion’s Emerging Artist exhibition and in 2022 she was selected as a finalist for the Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramics. She’s represented by The Benz Gallery (London), Wall Space Gallery (Ottawa), and The Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery (Waterloo). Dauma currently works from her home studio in London, ON.

Through clay, I attempt to express my point of view; my perception of day-to-day moments, and the memories I carry. Lost between the past, present, and future, I stumble to make sense of it all and heal. The tactile quality of clay enables me to explore these themes - to try better to understand myself, and the world around me. This is how I reconnect and hold on to the sense of childlike playfulness and curiosity. The pieces I create, and the act of making in and of itself, also serve as a form of escapism. There is comfort in saying things without any words. Growing up I hid in books about ghosts and aliens and mythical creatures. I hid in video games, in music, in quiet lonely places. Running away to imaginary worlds felt safe and comforting. I spent a large part of my childhood on my grandparents’ farms, surrounded by all kinds of animals and plants - I often use this love of nature as a drive. I find the insect world exceptionally fascinating and inspiring, but I’m very much interested in all things botanical too. I love to create conceptually driven, peculiar characters with rich surfaces that quietly tell a story of their own.