statement

I’m Ellen, an artist from and living in Cork. This place serves as one of my main inspirations; my work aims to capture the enduring beauty and quiet narratives found in the landscape and the harbour, the suburbs, the flora and fauna, those places which so many of us live but we so often overlook.

I previously created detailed ink work, inspired by the mythical and the spiritual. Then slowly I began transitioning to making bolder and larger work, inspired by the real world. This could not have happened without my sketchbook practice. A safe place, free to experiment, explore and let go.

I’ve always felt like a drawer over a painter, loving the immediacy of drawing. Embracing the act of putting lines directly on paper, letting ideas flow and exploring mark making and texture accompanying line work. Most of the materials I use are permanent almost immediately, forcing me to make decisions quickly and accept all those happy mistakes that inevitably will come. This allows me to by-pass the perfectionism and overthinking that I am so prone to!

I made a promise, to be true to myself in my work. To have my work feel like me, to always explore what that means and to acknowledge, that it will be ever changing. I have spent many years as a yoga practitioner and teacher, chasing the so called ‘self.’ The practice of art mirrors so intensely this journey. For me, now at this time in my life, it’s relishing the little moments, the quiet times, the simplicity and the beauty in the everyday and appreciating the over looked.Through a monochromatic palette, I explore the contrast between light and shadow, seeking to create work that is both familiar and mysterious. Each piece I create is a meditation on the creative process, my inner world, nature and the presence of human habitation within it.

Through my work, I aim to invoke a sense of timelessness, allowing the viewer to pause and contemplate the subtle beauty that we can find in those quiet corners. These places, although specific in their origin, speak to a universal experience, of connection to place, memory and the passage of time.

Exhibitions

2024

LHQ Gallery, ‘Made by Hands’

Kinsale Library, ‘Winter in Kinsale’

Bio

Cork native, ocean lover, yoga practitioner (previously a teacher).

BA Archaeology & History of Art (University College Cork)

MA Archaeology (University College Cork)