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Nereocystis - a road trip in the USA

Nereocystis – a road trip in the USA

Battle Rock, Port Orford, Oregon Nereocystis – finding my way Background In September of 2016 I undertook a project while travelling along the West coast of the USA from Los Angeles to Seattle. My primary reason for travelling was to visit my 96 year old grandfather who is living near Santa Barbara. I also visited other family and friends in the LA region before driving North on solo adventure.…

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Bookbinding workshops with LSAD print department

Bookbinding workshops with LSAD print department

folded books, a simple cut fold, great for books where one side is text and the other blank or a poster Bookbinding and letterpress At the start of December I taught an intensive full day workshop in bookbinding to students from Limerick School of Art and Design’s Printmaking Department. It was the second part of a pair of workshops hosted at Limerick Printmakers. The first session was…

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Paintings from Arba Minch Prison

Paintings from Arba Minch Prison

Painting one almost complete Painting my experiences from Arba Minch Prison Having spent another intensive period of time at Arba Minch Prison, documenting and teaching art, I was feeling the urge to paint myself. It has been many many years since I picked up a paintbrush for an oil painting. I remember returning from the first trip and feeling the urge to paint. On that occasion I got as far as…

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Teaching art at with The Arba Minch Art Project - 7

Teaching art at with The Arba Minch Art Project – 7

Teaching art 7 – accurate observational drawing with beginners Initial observations In addition to working with the advanced group I did some exercises with the beginners class. This was quite a different ball game as there were 33 students, only a small handful of whom had any english at all. Joseph, our translator, was essential which meant only one person could really teach at a time. The…

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Teaching art with The Arba Minch Art Project 6

Teaching art with The Arba Minch Art Project 6

painting of a white sphere in a white box. Teaching art 6 – observing colour and light Unfortunately the constraints of time needed for students to finish their paintings this exercise did not get the time needed. I managed to talk through it with Chalew as the rest of the students were preparing the space for the mini exhibition that was going to be held. Paul Evans, a representative from the…

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Teaching art with The Arba Minch Art Project - 5

Teaching art with The Arba Minch Art Project – 5

Texture workshop – me talking to the group, photo by John Teaching art part 5 – Texture Using a variety of materials to create different effects Every painting I’ve seen produced as a result of the classes we’ve taught here has been very smooth – paint is played down in a very even, flat style. Some are blended and some are more graphic but the paint is no thicker either way. Perhaps this is…

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Teaching art with The Arba Minch Art Project 4

Teaching art with The Arba Minch Art Project 4

Plein-air painting in the mens visiting area during lunch time Teaching art 4 – plein air painting This exercise was led by John but I came along to document and play a supportive role as John would be starting a canvas of his own. The students were uncomfortable about painting out in the prison environment. Quite a crowd of onlookers grew around them which was understandably disconcerting for…

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Teaching art with the Arba Minch Art Project 3

Teaching art with the Arba Minch Art Project 3

Demonstration drawing of the view from the door of the gallery we were using as a studio. initial drawing in biro followed by dilute india ink and a small brush. Teaching art part 3 Tone For this session I wanted to introduce the idea of tone. The approach taken thus far by John, their primary tutor, was that the group would go out into the prison and sketch a scene. They would make a line…

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Teaching drawing with the Arba Minch Art Project 2

Teaching drawing with the Arba Minch Art Project 2

Teaching drawing part 2 Perspective Perspective was a common problem the students were encountering when painting, both in scenes from around the prison and in works from their imagination. In order to help them with this we did a series of exercises drawing boxes. I placed a couple of boxes on a table and we began by drawing them in one point perspective – imagining that they were close to eye…

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Teaching drawing with The Arba Minch Art Project 1

Teaching drawing with The Arba Minch Art Project 1

Teaching drawing – part 1 Although my role with the Arba Minch Art Project is primarily that of documentary photographer, in this second (for me) iteration of the project I felt I had a lot of knowledge regarding drawing and other foundational exercises to impart. I taught a number of modules to the more advanced group with the idea being that they would in turn teach them to anyone from the…

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Small Art Works II curated by Gavin Hogg

Small Art Works II curated by Gavin Hogg

‘Art unplugs the buzzsaw’ I was invited to submit work into the second edition of ‘Small Art Works’, curated by Gavin Hogg. The only stipulation was that the pieces had to be small, no more than 60cm in size. The exhibition would be held in The Mews, a recently discovered venue for DIY art exhibitions in Limerick. It is a beautifully restored coach house at the rear of a Georgian red brick house,…

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We, Occupy Space - poster and brochure design

We, Occupy Space – poster and brochure design

  This exhibition took place in MART gallery, Rathmines, Dublin, a show by the Occupy Space collective. It marked the first exhibition of work since we decided to work as a collective. One year of Skype meetings and talking through our ideas for work, offering support and advice to each other. The idea for the poster came from a print I made using a collection of old type at the Letterpress…

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Business cards - DIY design and printing

Business cards – DIY design and printing

DIY Business Cards – design and printing Before heading off on a one month residency to the USA I realised I needed some new business cards. The old ones, although I like them, do not have this website listed and are a bit dated in relation to my current practice. I wanted something that would encompass the full range of what I do in one card – the idea of having one card for bookbinding, one for…

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Wildfires: recent, not so recent and potential

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Dust devils, Angeles Crest Highway

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Access denied, cottages at crystal cove. So many memories!

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Hallelujah! Said a few prayers at the Church of Type, Santa Monica