Wraparound art: The Irish painter who also makes scarves

The fastest way into colour this spring is with a scarf wrapped or tied around the head, neck or shoulders, adding an instant uplift to any outfit. In Ireland, we are gifted with designers, diverse in their expression when it comes to using silk, cotton or linen as a canvas for their compositions and visual imagery.

One such example is artist and designer Clare O Connor with degrees in visual art practice and design communication from the Institute of Art, Design and Technology (IADT). She lived and worked in Berlin and Venice and launched her brand of “wearable art” in 2018. She describes it as collectable editions of her paintings.

Her passion for abstract painting was influenced by three German painters – Albert Oehlen, Katarina Grosse and Charline Van Heyl – known for their sense of explosive colour and energy, whom she met while studying fine art.

“My work is intuitive and I love to create visually dynamic paintings and compositions which use a clash of form, colour and collage… creating visual labyrinths.”

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The works on canvas use found objects, tissue papers, acrylic and spray paint and off-cuts of old sample silk and cashmere scarves, finished with resin.

As illustrated here, the artwork printed on fabric can be used in various ways, but make their own powerful statement whichever way they are worn. O Connor has been the recipient of many awards and residencies in more than a decade since her graduation. In 2016, for example, she was one of more than 100 Irish artists chosen as part of the Imago Mundi Irish Collection book as part of the Luciano Benetton collection.

In 2018 she was part of the Dublin Canvas project as a way of brightening up public spaces. A year later she was awarded a residency in the Tyrone Guthrie Centre, an experience she describes as incredibly productive and rewarding. She since spent a further two-week residency there and in Cill Rialaig in 2021. Last December Meath County Council bought three of her paintings for the Meath County Council Arts Collection.

The idea of printing on fabric came while O Connor was living in Venice and hit upon another way of creating an income. Since then, she has developed a broad range of styles at various price points, all made in Italy. She has fine-tuned details and introduced signature stripe “twillies”, narrow scarves with hand-rolled edges and frays.

O Connor has also introduced bamboo, and during lockdown expanded to include homewares and a small range of tote bags and cushions in organic bamboo and cotton, along with limited-edition prints. Check out her website to see her new wool/silk large wraps and sarongs for 2022 recently launched at Showcase. clareoconnor.net