My name is Sammy Kane and I am a 23 year old Kilkenny based painter who works in oils. I strive to capture moments of powerful emotion on canvas and seize the essence of of a person through portraiture. I have focused on learning traditional techniques and my motivation comes from the drive to improve my skills and stir up joy in the audience. I am inspired by the complexity and beauty of the human form and its propensity to find hope in the most unlikely places. I find great solace in obsessing over the minute details in a painting. I am influenced by painters such as Sarah Purser and Cecelia Beaux. My process involves spending time with, sketching and photographing the subject to understand their mannerisms and expressions and to capture that genuine moment. To create my paintings I use a detailed under-drawing followed by layers of grey paint (grisaille) to build up a strong tonal study and finish with many layer of translucent and opaque glazes over the grisaille to bring them to life with a burst of colour and vitality over a period of weeks. As someone who has only started learning to paint the past year, I can say I am truly enthralled by the medium and joy it brings me. My work aims to share this joy with others.
