About the artist

Lavia (Yanzi) Lin, is a Berlin-based artist from Shanghai, China.  Born in 1995,  Lavia was the name she gave to herself at 3 years old, an unusual name she preferred to her birth name, with the Italian meaning of “the way”. Along her way, she came to Berlin in 2014 to pursue her studies in the arts. She has been charmed by the multicultural city and its vibrant art scene featuring international artists. She studied art and philosophy at Bard College Berlin, an interesting combination which allowed her to explore different fields and expressions. 
She started painting at 7 years old, as a child, she has shown sensitivity in colours and for her, colours have become a way of expressing herself. She attended weekend classes at “Creative Art”, which she called her cradle of creativity for 10 years. She learned the mixed medias and various painting techniques there before developing her own artistic style. She sees colours in relation to emotions and melodies. In Shanghai, she has dedicated her art works to charity by participating in charity auctions. Already at the age of 16, in 2012 she had her first solo exhibition “Sentimental Colours” at Chamber of Commerce in Hamburg  as a cultural program of “China Time," celebrating the friendship of sister-cities:Shanghai-Hamburg. Throughout the years, her artistic styles have changed. She enjoys making colourful paintings and experimenting with textures and mediums. Since 2021, she is working as a freelance artist and arts & cultural manager.