Schoolwork

VISUAL, Carlow Tues - Sat 11am- 5.30pm, Sun 2-5pm Until Jan 12 visualcarlow.ie

From September 2011, Blaise Smith went back to school, four days a week, attending Presentation College in Carlow as a commissioned artist to paint daily life.

There is, to be sure, something photographic about the visual style of many of the 20 paintings on show, but that has to do with the fact that photography has shaped the way we frame and see things. Each painting, as an accompanying video demonstrates, was painstakingly set up and made from life, day by day. The result is a candid glimpse into the tenor and texture of school life, not a publicity exercise, as the range of moods, temperaments and attitudes on view clearly demonstrates.