A Bounce Borrowed

Group Show

4 February — 25 March 2017

About the Artist(s)

Felicity Clear's practice is drawing-based and her current work consists of large-scale drawings, models, projections and animation which explore ideas of space, structure, time, stability and failure. Clear’s interest is in drawing as a cognitive process, as a means to visually translate abstract ideas, that is most compelling. Clear’s approach to drawing makes links between the worlds of mark making and creates a relationship between drawings and objects. This then creates a sense of an open-ended proposition, of an artist still in the process of working out her ideas. Her recent exhibitions include, The Dlr Lexicon Dun Laoghaire 2016, The Model, Sligo 2015, Butler Gallery, Kilkenny (Solo) 2014. Other solo exhibitions include The Rubicon Gallery, The Lab, The Mermaid Arts Centre, Galway Arts Centre, and The Drawing Project. Clear has exhibited in many curated group exhibitions including: Limerick City Gallery, Crawford Gallery, Irish Museum Of Modern Art, National Gallery Of Ireland, Contemporary Arts Society London, Shanghai Contemporary Art Museum. She is a part time lecturer in the National College of Art and Design.

Richard Forrest graduated from Crawford College of Art and Design, Cork in 2011. Forrest’s practice is characterised by a spirit of experimentation and analysis. He explores contemporary notions of authenticity and is interested in cultural and technological forces which influence our experiences. Within this framework his art can be seen to challenge our learned and perceptual understanding of objects, material and space. His solo projects include Sensorium, Soma Contemporary, Waterford and Persistence of Vision, The Joinery, Dublin. He has exhibited in numerous group exhibitions throughout Ireland including The Crawford Gallery, The Black Mariah, Occupy Space, MART and Catalyst. Richard works in sculpture, installation and new media.

Helen Hughes's processes focuses on the manipulation of materials and objects to draw attention to their qualities which are often latent in mass produced goods or units. Adding her own layer of history, the intention of the work is to present combinations of altered objects and relations that might connect with the viewer through common narratives of memory and subjectivity. Hughes’ work is predominantly sculptural, utilising expendable materials from modern mass production systems. Often developed for specific sites, materiality is central to the work and both found objects and purchased industrial products are utilised. Colour is prominent, in particular colour that is innate to materials. Her materials include polystyrene, wood, and plastic, amongst others. Switching the importance of form over function the component elements are playfully reworked through removal, addition and recasting, to disguise or reveal appearances. She has exhibited widely both internationally and in Ireland, including Tulca 2016, Molesworth Gallery 2016 and DLR Lexicon Dun Laoghaire 2016.

John O' Kane recently graduated from Sligo and is interested in cultural, political and environmental issues. He works with mixed mediums, such as ceramics, sculpture and wood, often using materials that are imbued with historical value or which have the potential to unlock memories of past events. He is interested in the challenge of transforming found materials into works which rekindle memories or past events.

Jane Rainey paintings aim to create a state of flux, living somewhere in-between representation and abstraction, depicting things that are of this world and unworldly. She uses bright colours which pulsate against each other making harmonies and uneasy clashes. A sense of overwhelming uneasy and awkwardness occupy the painting, alluding to the fact that all is not what it seems. In 2014 Jane Graduated from Ulster University Belfast and in 2016 she was awarded a scholarship and took a MA Fine Art at the National College of Art and Design, Dublin. Her most recent exhibitions include; Tulca 2016, (curated by Daniel Jewesbury) and the RDS Visual Art Awards (curated by Alice Maher) Jane has also had her work featured on numerous online and printed platforms such as Creative Boom and Fresh Painting Magazine.

Felicity Clear, Richard Forrest, Helen Hughes, John O’ Kane & Jane Rainey

A Bounce Borrowed brought together five artists, each bringing fresh and distinct approaches to their art making. They were collectively motivated by an interest in the play and interplay of materials. The works were also an expression of the artists’ familiarity and confidence in how materials and ideas might coalesce.

The title of the exhibition was a reference to joy and attempted to evoke the special kind of energy that can happen within a group exhibition. It also referenced a shared interest in play and delight that can be found in the conversations that may emerge in bringing together works from such diverse approaches to making art and the pleasure and consequent energy that can be encountered.

The “bounce” could be a dialogue between works, or between the five artists or could be found within the viewers experience in the galleries. The exhibition celebrated the human nature of creativity, and creativity as a form of receiving and giving. The exhibition also nodded to the knowledge and skill of the artist and how they have developed in this play an understanding and command of materials. Tools real and imaginary, varnish, balloons, constructions, drawing, paper, shadows and digital life all made an appearance in the exhibition. This exhibition was the second in a series which brought together artists who were at varying stages of their artistic development and careers

A Bounce Borrowed

Group Show

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