About | Lia Mice

Pioneering sculptor-performer of supersized musical instruments

"An award-winning multidisciplinary artist who harnesses technological advances to bend pop music into surprising new forms." - Boomkat

Lia Mice

Born in Cairns, Australia

Lives & works in London, UK

Lia Mice is an award winning multidisciplinary artist, educator and pioneering maker of oversized sculptural musical instruments.

For over 20 years, Mice has prolifically produced a diverse body of work, frenetically shape shifting through multidisciplinary practices and international music and art scenes. At the core of her creative approach is a joyful DIY ethic: creating with what she has, without waiting for resources or permission.

As an mixedmedia artist of sculptural musical instruments, Mice has shown her instruments at V&A Museum London, Ars Electronica Linz, Tate Modern London, Institute of Contemporary Art London, Deliaphonic Festival Conventry, Sonorities Festival Belfast, International Conference for Computer Human Interaction (CHI) New Orleans and Georgia Tech Atlanta. Mice’s 2 metres wide and tall instrument Chaos Bells was a finalist at the 2023 Guthman Musical Instrument Competition. Mice is a co-founder of instrument making collective Vital Organs alongside Sarah Angliss and Karina Townsend. Mice’s instruments are provocations to the commercial musical instrument industry that focuses on small desktop instruments made of unsustainable materials. Mice’s practice explores the design of instruments larger than the performer. She build with reclaimed materials headed for landfill and experiments with creating new eco-friendlier materials. Mice has collaborated on instrument design projects with Native Instruments, The Barbican, LSO and the OHMI Trust with whom she designed a One-Handed Violin concept. Mice is an advocate for accessible musical instrument design and is herself monocular sighted.

As a self-producing solo performing experimental pop artist, Mice has released four solo albums and toured 15 countries performing in renowned venues including the Museum of Arts and Design New York, WOMB Tokyo, Supernormal Festival UK, Fat Out Festival Manchester and Sled Island Festival Calgary. Her unique productions are the result of years of studio experimentation with technology old and new including reel-to-reel tape, self-hacked instruments, pure data and samplers. Mice's all-hardware live A/V sets incorporate large-scale self-designed instruments and voice sampling with dancers and audio-reactive visuals. Since 2019, Mice co-hosts with A'Bear a monthly Threads Radio show called EastBlenders. Since moving to London in 2015 she has founded and curated Electrolights AV (2015-2022) - an experimental platform highlighting audio-visual artists and performers, and Lost Valley (2021-present) - a late night dance party highlighting experimental techno live artists and DJs.

As an educator, Mice has led instrument design workshops with participants aged 8 to 92 for clients including The Barbican, London Symphonic Orchestra and IKLECTIK Art Lab. In 2021, Mice was awarded the Oram Award for Innovation in Sound, Music and Related Technologies presented by PRS, British Council and the New Radiophonic Workshop. Mice has taught in Higher Education for 4 years and is the Programme Leader of the MA Creative Music Production at the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance in London. She holds a Masters of Music in Creative Practice from Goldsmiths University of London and a PhD in Media and Arts Technology from Queen Mary University of London.