“Ar an Imeall - On The Edge” explores the story of Ireland’s offshore islands encapsulating their history, culture and their overall essence. It has been in gestation for almost six years. I have painted almost 60 islands (oil on board) almost all from the mainland. The artwork attempts to capture the soul and spirit of each island from my own sense of the place. It’s about language, culture, the stories and the way people lived. This project is unique in that it is the first time that anyone has depicted our offshore islands in painting with supporting stories. I like to think of it as a celebration of our islands. The earliest inhabitants of Ireland lived on the shores and adjoining islands. This collection invites the viewer to be aware of our world and what’s lost and what can be lost.  The islands were little worlds of their own, serving communities. However, emigration, basic access as well as services like education and health can prove very challenging and then you have the weather, such as storms often rendering them inaccessible. To understand each story behind the islands I visited a large selection of them and read about each one, getting a glimpse into a different world. These islands have suffered famine, storms and emigration. This project aims to ensure that these islands will never be forgotten.

Further development of the project will look at ways to go deeper into these investigations of moments of life on the islands, memories, imagined memory, struggles to stay, the devastation of leaving, the reality of living in isolation. It will record the folklore, songs, poem and traditions

AR AN IMEALL - The Book marks the culmination of the second part of this ongoing project. The book consists of photographs of the paintings, along with the story of each island. The stories incorporate the history, the tragedies, as well as more unusual events from each of the islands. While mostly in English, some of the texts are in Irish, especially where Irish is still spoken on the island. Translations are included. It has an introduction by historian, Diarmaid Ferriter and essays by different contributors: art critic Cristín Leach, UCC climatologist Dr. Kieran Hickey, Breanndán Ó Beaglaíoch, ceoltóir agus Máire Ní Fhinneadha, scríbhneoir. This 124 page book is a limited edition of 500 copies, designed by MIR Design and Illustration, printed in Ireland by Plus Print. It has a hard back woven linen cover and is 100% made in Ireland.

The book will be launched in Naas Library and Cultural Centre on Thursday 5th November at 6.00pm by Lucina Russell, lecturer at Limerick School of Art and Design. An exhibition featuring a selection of my paintings of the islands will also be on view in the gallery.