Amanda Doran luxuriates in the painted medium and celebrates the character of those she paints, writes Ingrid Lyons
When Amanda Doran completed her BA at NCAD in 2012, images of her work immediately travelled beyond the degree show and into circulation in the contemporary art sphere in Ireland. Being insistent and bold in its subject matter and luxurious in its use of oil paint, people found her work instantly appealing (see IAR Autumn 2012). There was particular interest in Doran’s Tattooed Lady, 2011, a painting that probed unapologetically at ideas of taste and class. The subject of the work, the tattooed lady, is fabulous, voluptuous and confident. She is fleshy and exuberant, and appears to have no need or want for external validation. Perched on a stool, smiling broadly and lifting her skirt to reveal fleshy, inked thighs, the tattooed lady offers an antidote to the representation of women in the mainstream media.
Using satellite imaging, photographer David Thomas Smith echoes the Arecibo radio message transmitted into deep space forty-five years ago, writes Stephanie McBride
‘I knew from the age of three what I wanted to do,‚’ sculptor Carolyn Mulholland tells Brian McAvera
The historically important Doneraile Court in north Cork has opened its doors to the public following an extensive conservation and renovation project, writes Peter Pearson
