The starting point for Maeve McCarthy's latest body of work is a return to where she grew up in Glenageary, Co Dublin. Although her family home is superficially unchanged from when she last lived there, both of her parents have recently passed away. The house remains as a repository of memories, however, triggering emotions and a sensory feedback on a life that cannot be reclaimed. The artist responds through her work and reflects on the relationship between place, memory, identity, and what it means to call somewhere home. There is also a sense of regeneration though, as she contemplates moving on again.
On a formal level, McCarthy continues her exploration of the contrasting qualities of light and atmosphere - mainly nighttime and twilight - begun in her rural paintings. A series of large-scale works are counterpointed by small tempera and oil works on panel.
Born in 1964, Maeve McCarthy lives and works in Dublin. She spent several years in the USA following graduation from NCAD and has also worked in film animation in Ireland and Germany. She has exhibited nationally and internationally, including the BP Portrait Awards at the National Portrait Gallery, London. McCarthy has won several awards, mainly for portraiture. Her portrait of Maeve Binchy is in the collection of the National Gallery of Ireland. Her work is also held by the National Museum, the Haverty Trust, the National Self-Portrait Collection, the OPW, the Royal Dublin Society and the Royal College of Physicians. She has been a full member of the RHA since 2007. This will be her fifth solo exhibition at The Molesworth Gallery.
