Hamilton Gallery countdown to our St Brigid’s Day exhibition at 12 Star Gallery, Europe House London, is underway.

The exhibition will open to the public from January 23rd and run until February 1st, St Brigid’s Day, and it is part of the Irish Embassy in London’s St Brigid’s Day Celebration of Women and creativity.

In the run up to our opening night in London we bring you a daily blog with a selection of the 90 works by Irish women artists that will be shown at the exhibition.

We will include interviews and insights from the artists involved as well as other news and developments relating to events at the 12 Star Gallery in London which will occur in compliment to the exhibition.

Tonight our artists are Jane Murtagh, Leonora Neary, Hilary Nunan, Cora O’Brien, and Anastasia O’Donoghue Healy

We also include the poem “Barnacles” by Leland Bardwell. Leland’s poem “St Brigid’s Day 1989” was circulated to all participating artists as the thematic inspiration for the exhibition.

Jane Murtagh Born in Dublin, she now lives and works on a farm in Cratloe, Co Clare where she established her metal-smithing studio 20 years ago. Jane graduated in Fine Art from Dun Laoghaire School of Art & Design specialising in metalwork and drawing. She works with nonferrous metals developing a visual narrative using the techniques of repousse, etching and gilding.

 “I live on a farm by the Shannon where reeds grow along the shore.  Walking down through the fields towards the river on a windy autumnal day, the reeds swayed.  I thought about Leyland Bardwell standing very still by the water, watching and listening, words weaving through her mind.   Picking up seeds, light as feathers, I get drawing, teasing the lines along until at last I see something I know could work in metal.”

Leonora Neary

From Roscommon, Leonora graduated from the University of Ulster in Belfast with an honour’s degree in Visual Communication. Her work has featured in both the RHA and RUA annual exhibitions and she has been awarded residencies at Cill Rialaig and the Tyrone Guthrie Centre.

My piece, blest by everything takes its inspiration from St Brigid's close bond with the natural world, reminding us of our duty of care to our environment.

Hilary Nunan: Colour, texture and a love of nature inspires my work which is largely intuitive with an emphasis on the materials I use and the process of making in response to my environment.

 My response to Leland Bardwell’s poem ‘St. Brigid’s Day 1989’: Behind the reed hushed margins, I hear what Leland was saying ……. I hope Leland can hear what I am saying as I look across the bog. 

Cora O’Brien: Born in Belfast, grew up in Newbridge, Kildare, lives and works in Dublin. Studied in Dublin Institute of Technology and NCAD. O’Brien has had solo exhibitions and has exhibited at RHA, RUA, and many other juried shows.
”The portrait shows a woman of anytime, anywhere, making a strong presence - like Brigid. Her simple red dress conveys her strength, knowledge and pioneering spirit, and that she is of no particular social status. She is intent on her work.”

Anastasia O’Donoghue Healy Originally from Wexford Anastasia is a self-taught painter living in West Cork. Her paintings reflect a meeting of her exterior journey in the landscape with her personal interior journeying which she captures intuitively by her use of colour and mark making.

 Some years ago, I visited an exhibition titled “Analysing Cubism” at The Crawford Gallery. Inspired by its’ women artists, my childhood experiences of riding bare backed and the county of Kildare together with the imagery within Bardwell’s poem my drawing and intuition found this response.