Irish Gothic presents the work of one of Ireland’s most accomplished artists, Patricia Hurl
Irish Gothic presents the work of one of Ireland’s most accomplished artists, Patricia Hurl
South Tipperary Arts Centre in partnership with Tipperary Arts Office and the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) is delighted to bring Irish Gothic by artist Patricia Hurl to Tipperary. Originally curated and presented at The Irish Museum of Modern Art in 2023, this exhibition tours to Tipperary in May and June as part of a co-presentation with The Source, Thurles, with both exhibitions curated by Johanne Mullan, Curator: Collections, IMMA.
Hurl’s work is by its nature, political and traverses the disciplines of painting, multi-media and collaborative art practice. Irish Gothic was the first major exhibition of Patricia Hurl’s work spanning over 40 years and featured more than 70 of the artist’s paintings and drawings. Since the 1980s, Patricia Hurl has created work in a range of media that deals with loss, pain, frustration and loneliness. The exhibition features work mainly drawn from her early paintings.
In 1979 Hurl returned to art college having been a housewife and mother for 17 years. “College gave me the opportunity to experiment and develop a new language with which to express myself. I began to work on a large scale, using oils, which allowed me a physical involvement with painting, which would have been impossible at home. My subject matter is archetypal; drawn directly from my experiences in suburbia, taking on the traditional role of homemaker. I paint with an urgency, which still surprises me.”
A number of the paintings in both venues, come from an exhibition titled The Living Room Myths and Legends at the Temple Bar Gallery in 1988. Hurl recreated her version of the suburban idyll, her living room in the gallery complete with furniture brought from her home; a bookcase, a sofa, TV, and a painted word- carpet. For Hurl these domestic comforts were a stark contrast to the paintings hanging on the walls which reflected another side of this reality.
Here at STAC key works such as Sleeping Woman (1984) and Hush a Bye Baby(1987) reference the pain of child loss, the often-lonely path and lack of support that accompanies such a traumatic experience. Hurl often uses the act of painting to give a voice to her most personal experiences and to process her feelings of grief and sadness.
Early works such as The Visitation (Weeping Woman) (1987) demonstrate Hurl’s characteristic use of highly expressionistic and layered brush strokes that tend to blur distinctions between the figurative and abstraction. This stylistic blend intensifies the visceral qualities and emotion in Hurl’s work painted in spontaneous and instinctive bursts.
Drawings and notebooks have always been central to Hurl’s practice. Both venues include a selection of publications, prints and sketchbooks dating back to 1988 and provide an insight into the genesis of Hurl’s work.
Originally from Dublin and a former member of Temple Bar Galleries and Studios, Dublin, Hurl often works in collaboration with artist Therry Rudin. Hurl was a lecturer in Fine Art Painting at the Dublin Institute of Technology.She studied at the National College of Art and Design, 1975 and at Dun Laoghaire School of Art and Design,1984. Hurl was previously co-director of Damer House Gallery in Co Tipperary along with Therry Rudin and is currently part of the Na Cailleacha collective, who had their first exhibition here atSTAC in May 2021.
Hurl’s work was recently included in Who will write the History of Tears, Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw, 2021; The Narrow Gate of the Here and Now : IMMA 30 Years of the Global Contemporary: Queer Embodiment; IMMA, Dublin2021 - 2022; Elliptical Affinities: Irish Women Artists and the Politics of theBody, 1984 to the present, Highlanes Gallery, Drogheda, Co Louth and Limerick City Art Gallery, 2019 - 2020. Hurl has exhibited in selected group and solo shows and has represented Ireland in symposiums in Atlanta USA, Caversham, S.A. and Zaragoza, Spain. She was a contributor to The Great Book of Ireland. Her work is included in many publications including Art and Architecture of Ireland Volume V: Twentieth Century, Royal Irish Academy, 2015. Hurl’s work is represented in private and public collections including IMMA; The Arts Council /An Chomhairle Ealaíon; Drogheda Municipal Collection, Highlanes Gallery and theCollection of University of Limerick. She was recently awarded the Pollock Krasner Artist award, 2023.
The exhibition is in association with IMMA and supported by the Arts Council of Ireland and Tipperary Arts Office.
Exhibition dates and events:
South Tipperary Arts Centre: 10 May – 22 June
18th May –National Drawing Day at STAC 11am-12pm & 2–3pm
We will take a deep dive into the works exhibited as part of the Irish Gothic by Patricia Hurl and let our inspiration fly with materials provided on the day. Working with homemade charcoal sticks, crafted from bramble and elder, these National Drawing Day sessions will be facilitated by artist Annie Hogg. These sessions are Drop-in and suitable for an adult attendance.
Source Arts Centre: 31 May – 29 June
11th June – Patricia Hurl in conversation with Aideen Barry
