Remote Response

It is, for me, always strange and exciting to see my paintings hung in a gallery space through a digital image, knowing I will not be present in person to see the work itself. You imagine yourself standing there, looking at your work, looking at the other works around it. Maybe you even get a selfie with the paintings?

I had decided not to frame the painting, Suburban Garden, which is painted on a hardback book cover, but to counter the risk that it might be bent or damaged en route, I mounted it on a smaller piece of plywood. With Boy with a Toy Camera, a painting on an A1 piece of paper, I sent bulldog clips so it could be hung suspended. It quickly caught my attention in the photograph that the latter piece was framed. It looked very professional, and I am grateful for the time and effort Fiona Richmond, the exhibition curator, must have gone to in order to frame the piece.

Maybe in this imaginary space with the work, somebody approaches me and asks, “So what are these paintings about?” I think I would probably inwardly sigh while gathering my thoughts…

“Well, they are about watching my kids grow up in a suburban area in Dublin. They are about trying to control time and memory through paint. They are about watching technology encroaching on their childhood and feeling powerless to stop it. They are about stillness and acceptance. They are about holding on.”

I am sure the person who asked would regret asking after the emotional outburst. They would politely excuse themselves to go and get another glass of wine. I would stand there and nod, feeling exposed and unprofessional, before stepping back into the painting.

A big thank you to fellow artist Alexandra Helm for sending me photographs of my work in the exhibition space.

Response, a Split Collective exhibition, is currently showing at the Gatehouse Gallery and Rectory in Guernsey. Please see a link to the exhibition catalogue here: Response

Suburban Garden, painting above left (oil and acrylic on hardback book cover)

Top photo: Paintings, Boy with a Toy Camera and Suburban Garden, hung together at the Gatehouse Gallery in Guernsey