Art

Five art shows to see this week

Kaye Maahs, the Biophilia hypothesis and sculpture as a response to Brexit

Mary Conroy, Metatron’s Cube, Signal Arts Centre

Aidan Dunne's face
Aidan Dunne
Sat Jul 20 2019 - 05:00

Kaye Maahs: GRÜNEWALD

Claremorris Gallery, Claremorris, Co Mayo, Until August 3rd

Although the show’s title seems to reference the painter of the Isenheim Alterpiece, Matthias Grünewald (who resisted Renaissance ideas in favour of medieval tradition), Kaye Maahs’s own paintings more closely recall the Romanticism of Casper David Friedrich. Her stark expanses of woodland, water and mountains are often shrouded in mist and there is a reflective, melancholy note to them, their mood enhanced by her spare, judicious palette, evoking both the landscape and an inner world.

Mary Conry: Metatron’s Cube

Signal Arts Centre, 1 Albert Avenue, Bray, Co Wicklow, July 22nd–August 4th

Mary Conroy’s work engages with the Biophilia hypothesis, the suggestion that “we humans have an innate connection to life and all living things.” She delves into basic organic structure, linking it to the Archangel Metatron’s Cube in speculations on sacred geometry. The Cube is said to contain the geometric patterns underlying all things.

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Anthony Murphy: Silver Branch Perception

The Oriel Gallery, 17 Clare St, Dublin

Painter Anthony Murphy’s CV includes an unusual early entry: while still in his teens he played the starring role in a BBC production of Tom Brown’s Schooldays. His boldly stated, strongly coloured figurative compositions recall the Post-Impressionism of Gauguin and are invested with personal symbolism.

Cathal McGinley: Ealaín ón gCladach – Art from the Shore

Regional Cultural Centre, Port Road, Letterkenny, Co Donegal Until August 31st

Paintings, drawings, sculpture and film by Cathal McGinley, stemming from a three-year residency split between Inis Bó Finne and mainland Donegal. With family connections to the island, and brought up within sight of his family’s home there, McGinley’s work is stepped in local lore, customs and personalities. An accompanying group show, Atlantic, features work from the rich collections of the Glebe Gallery, the Arts Council and Donegal CoCo.

Jason Deans: As If Nothing Ever Lasts

Leah Beeferman and Alex Yudzon: Field Recordings

Sirius Arts Centre, Cobh, Co Cork, Until September 14th Deans' sculptural installation and drawings are a response to the UK's decision to depart the EU, with an eye to questions surrounding the North-South border. Beeferman and Yudzon's work arises from separate residencies at Sirius. Both based in New York, they individually recount their experiences of the natural environment around Cobh in the form of large-scale photographs by the latter and digital drawings on fabric by the former.