Painting

Robert Downey

“You’re damned if you do, and damned if you don’t.”

Robert Downey’s practice mainly focuses on figurative painting and deals with the issues of social commentary and artist identity. His paintings open a painterly and conceptual dialogue between the dual role of subject and artist. The subject of the painting is always the author, the artist regardless of the sitter. models used are devises to portray the artists own feelings and emotions. The idea of painting the model, is not to capture their personal aura and display it on canvas but for the artist to see themselves and personal views reflected back at them. Being an artist in the modern era can be difficult especially for new artists. Everything you do has been done before, the weight of art history stands on you and the pressure to innovate is constant. It is therefore hard to create what you are interested in over what is considered new or contemporary. As student artists we all share similar fears and frustrations. Self-doubt can lead to one feeling foolish or another way to describe it is “feeling like a clown”. You can feel foolish when venturing into the unknown, but it would also be ignorant to not be open to new learning experiences.

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Welcome

We formally welcome you to the Limerick School of Art & Design Graduate Show of 2019 featuring the work of final year LSAD Graduates from Painting, Photography Film Video, Print Contemporary Practice, Sculpture & Combined Media, Ceramic Design, Fashion Design, Fashion and Textiles for Product & Costume, Graphic Design Communication and Game Art Design,

By the time you see these words your work will be on display, representing a segment of life, time, effort, energy and creativity that form the final chapter of your four year journey. Take a bow, savour this moment, not just in a singular manner but as a collective body of students, sharing in each other’s trials, tribulations and success. There is a special magic here at LSAD that allows individuality, collegiality and diversity to prosper. Here in our LSAD world, there is space and time, and the work that now inhabits the Clare St Campus, in digital and physical forms, is the residue of that experience. It is not the work that leaves with you, it is the lived experience of striving to make sense of our environments and of ourselves in the world.

As you go forth to pursue your passions in your selected field or simply to make a living, what is the collective strength that you hold within you all? You are part of the creative and cultural sector and how you exercise your abilities and strength can really affect and change our society. This expectation should not be a weight, imagine it more like a catapult or launch pad for your future selves.