My First Solo Exhibition!

October 2017 | Eibhilin Crossan

I was delighted to present my first solo exhibition in the Atrium Gallery of the Backstage Theatre, in Longford. The exhibition, entitled ‘Eve’s Garden: Stories From The Wild’ ran from the 4th to the 20th October.  The opening night was a great success and I was thrilled with the turnout, on what was a particularly wild night, how appropriate!

I was also honoured to have the wonderful and talented Irish artist Róisín O’Farrell open my exhibition! Róisín has been something of a mentor to me this past year, for which I will be eternally grateful. She is a true inspiration and a shining light amongst the new wave of contemporary Irish artists.

I am  very grateful to Mona Considine from Backstage, for inviting me to show and I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect setting for my first solo show!

This exhibition represented a body of work I have created over the last year. As with all my work, this collection was inspired by nature and in response to my environment.

The title of this exhibition – ‘Eve’s Garden: Stories from the Wild’, brings together the themes of the garden and the goddess. The Goddess series celebrates the sacred feminine as symbolic of mother nature. As woman gives birth to child, so too does the earth give birth to the flowers and plants. The personification of this energy that gives birth to and nourishes form is properly female. Many civilisations including the Celts honoured goddesses of nature and natural forces, with diverse qualities such as abundance, creation and beauty, as well as harshness and vengeance

In the Garden series, I continue to explore both Canopy and Wildflower themes. I have tried to abstract my experience of being immersed in nature, of walking through the woods, or sitting in the garden, under the trees, beneath the canopy of leaves. I borrow from the shapes and shadows of the flowers and leaves and use the negative spaces to create composition.  The soft lines and layers of rich colours create a sense of reflected light and evoke the sensuality and beauty of the organic world.

Here is a clip of the opening night speeches from myself and Róisín!

https://www.facebook.com/roisinofarrellartist/videos/1683571311654083/