Custom House Studios + Gallery cordially invites you to the official opening reception for Pride and Passion - Farm Portraits a solo exhibition of paintings by artist Mary Burke. Please join us on the evening of Thursday 29 May 2025, 6-8pm. Opening remarks by the artist.
I have always been fascinated by how we shape our environment to suit our needs and how in turn our immediate surroundings often shape us. From the domestic interiors of homes my exploration of industrialised landscape started in 2019 when I visited five farms in preparation for an exhibition at Limerick City Gallery of Art in 2021. I was immediately impressed with the potential of material to explore through painting. Livestock, hills and fields, corrugated roofs, the chrome, steel and glass of milking parlours, tractors, jeeps, trailers, and sheds provide a wealth of material to explore through painting.
Most of our landscape is industrialised. Appearance can be deceptive. Forests are managed and don’t always consist of native species and much of our landscape, however scenic, is purposed for food production. In many cases a field of grass has often been chemically treated and reseeded with imported seeds to maximise nutrition. Cattle sometimes wear monitors delivering data digitally to the farmer through an app on a smart phone. However, this does not necessarily mean that animals have a bad quality of life. The farmers that I have met were passionate about their farms and had a real duty of care for their animals. They are often the 3rd or 4th generation of farmers at the same location and hold a deep emotional attachment to the land. They are proud of their farms and passionate about what they do. They work extremely hard often with little financial return in comparison to the hours invested. I see a lot of parallels between farmers and artists. It isn’t just a job it is a vocation, a way of life. There are many challenges especially for smaller holdings and some farms will not survive. Often there is nobody to hand the farm on to and the line will end with this generation. These paintings are an attempt to capture a slice of life at this pivotal time in the 6000 years of farming in Ireland.
Mary Burke graduated with an honours BA in Fine Art from NCAD in 1982. She has had eighteen solo exhibitions and has been awarded several international residencies. Awards include a bursary from the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation (Montreal), a Golden Fleece Award from the Lillias Mitchell Trust and Visual Arts Bursaries from the Irish Arts Council (2007, 2009, 2020). Most recently she she completed a residency and public art commission at the Dun Laoghaire Baths Artists Studios (2023-24)
Mary is currently making farm paintings as artist in residence at the Airfield Estate in Dundrum in County Dublin.
The exhibition will run from 29 May - 22nd June, everyday.
Image Details: Milking at Knockainey, Oil Pastel on Canvas, 100 x 150 cm
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