Author: NiamhMcGuinne

Posted on

Antonietta

Thermal transfer screen print on aluminium
4 panels each measuring 42cm x 35cm
Overall dimension: 1800cm x 41cm (framed)
Edition of 10

In the sixteenth century a girl called Antonietta Gonzales exhibited the symptoms of congenital hypertrichosis lanuginosa: much of her body, including her face, was covered with hair. She was part of the court of Marie de Medici and was painted by Lavinia Fontana. While she was educated and cared for at the court, she and other individuals with this medical condition were often associated with animals, mythical beasts and monsters, Antonietta being equated in various accounts to a monkey or dog. Nowadays any visible body hair on a woman is considered socially unacceptable. Hairiness or hirsutism is seen as a medical problem that is addressed by hormonal as well as cosmetic treatments. Issues surrounding control of our body, our image, our profile are all expected to fit a certain pattern. Once we overstep that line we are seen to be inviting comment, ridicule and even violence.

Posted on

There is a Light that Never Goes Out

There is a Light That Never Goes Out
Dimensions: 46cm x 38cm
Plate size 37.7cm x 29.8cm
Etching, aquatint and chine collé on BFK Rives
Edition of 30

Urbis Felicitas: Graphic Studio Gallery 8th September – 1st October 2016
Urbis Felicitas (city of happiness) is an exhibition of fine art prints by more than 40 artists who take inspiration from Mountjoy Square and its immediate environs.
One of only five Georgian Squares in Dublin city, the square was planned in the late 18th Century by Luke Gardiner and completed in 1818. It is an obvious source of inspiration for members of Graphic Studio Dublin, many of whom pass through the square on their daily walk to work in the largest fine art print studio in Ireland, on the North Circular Road. Participating artists met local residents, visited homes, and took engaging tours of the square, which has housed many prominent characters over the years including James Joyce, WB Yeats and Séan O’Casey.
In the resulting exhibition, artists cast their critical eye on this inner city urban area, causing us to reassess our perception and appreciation of this overlooked treasure. Interior and exterior architectural features and furnishings, which express the 18th century Georgian splendour of this place, are among the depicted subjects, each perceived through a different lens.

Posted on

Noli Me Tangere

Noli Me Tangere
Etching, aquatint and screen print on paper
50cm x 30cm
2015

This print is part of a series of prints entitled Moon Phase, a theme that I periodically add to as the theme evolves. It includes Moonlit Roof (2010), Hirsute (2011), and The Somnambulist (2014).

Things connected to the moon include, moods, tides, lunacy, eclipse, sleep walking and werewolves. I use these ideas to illustrate the complex issues surrounding adolescence and having to grow up. They are also hugely inspired by writers such as Angela Carter (Company of Wolves), Karen Russell (St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves) and fairy tales.

Posted on

Monkey Boots

Monkey Boots
Etching and aquatint on paper
50cm x 40cm
Edition of 20

This print is connected to Hirsute, Wilgefortis and Self Perspectives. It involves a common theme of the animal instinct in human nature. Initially I had intended to add lots of hair to the legs but instead started to experiment by off-set printing it onto gesso-ed panels which I then abraded and scratched to expose hair underneath.