Earthly Delights, a stunning new exhibition by artist Paul McCloskey, has just opened at University Hospital Waterford (UHW). Vibrant and full of colour, this collection of paintings is already lifting spirits and bringing a smile to the faces of patients, staff and visitors to the hospital. On view on the corridor leading to the Outpatients Department at UHW, the exhibition runs until 5th January 2025. The exhibition programme at UHW is part of the Waterford Healing Arts programme, which is managed by Réalta, the national resource organisation for arts + health in Ireland. Artworks are for sale, to enquire please use the contact details at the end of this text.
Drawing on the artist’s surroundings, spiritual beliefs, imagination, memory and emotion, the vivid paintings in the Earthly Delights collection are also deeply influenced by the unique Irish landscape. As Paul McCloskey explains, “the varied and stunning Irish landscape, coupled with our unsettled weather and often fleeting and mottled light, inspire me greatly.” The collection is also enriched by the artist’s process of artistic creation, which allows him to remain in the moment as he paints, offering a cathartic pause from the day-to-day realities of life.
Based in County Wexford, Paul McCloskey is originally from Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan. Involved in visual art education for over 30 years, Paul attended the National College of Art and Design, Dublin and De Montfort University in the UK, where he received his Master’s Degree in Fine Art in 2010. In 2021/22 he completed the Turps London Correspondence Course, which offers painters a fresh perspective on their work within the context of current painting discourse. Paul has exhibited extensively nationally and internationally, throughout the UK, Europe and the US. His work is held in many private and public collections including the Office of Public Works State Art Collection, the Osten Art Collection, the Gallery of Drawing Macedonia, Monaghan and Wexford County Council art collections, Ulster Hospital Belfast and RTE. He was the 2016 recipient of the international jury’s Special Award at the Osten Biennial of Drawing/Works on Paper in Skopje, Macedonia, and five of his works are now in the permanent World Gallery of Drawing Collection of the Museum of Drawing/Works on Paper. In 2018, Paul was shortlisted for the London Contemporary Art Award and was awarded the Materials Bursary Award. He received the Arts Council of Ireland’s Agility Award in 2021 and 2022, and has received bursaries from Arts Links Wexford and Monaghan County Council on several occasions.
Claire Meaney, Director of Réalta/Waterford Healing Arts, says “We are so excited to conclude 2024 with this vibrant exhibition. We hope these colourful paintings will be a welcome addition to the hospital as the days gradually grow shorter and darker.”
Réalta is the national resource organisation dedicated to developing arts + health in Ireland. Through its national programme, Réalta delivers training; provides information, mentoring and advice; supports networking; engages with the HSE and other policy makers to increase understanding and support for arts + health; and provides the encyclopaedic national resource website artsandhealth.ie. At local level, Réalta delivers its extensive Waterford Healing Arts programme, which brings music, visual art, creative writing and storytelling to the bedside of patients at University Hospital Waterford and other healthcare settings to promote creativity, connection and discovery, and reduce isolation, anxiety and stress for patients, family members and staff. The Waterford Healing Arts programme also provides rich examples of good practice, and research, pilots and evaluates new ideas, all of which informs Réalta’s national work. Réalta is core funded by the Arts Council and the HSE.
ENDS
Further info: Aisling Kennedy, Réalta, aisling.kennedy@realta.ie /051-842664
Image: Artist Paul McCloskey in his studio, 2024.
