Page 10 - LandEscape Interview

E scape Paul McCloskey

Land It’s my intention to evoke a sense of spirit, by

suggesting the vastness of the landscape, earth and
sky, matter and space as the means in which to
express this sense of spirit, inducing for me that
sense of personal growth, the sense of awakening
to the beauty, divinity and perfection, to the divine
order within all things.
I would like to mention also your Portraits
series: as our readers can view directly at
http://www.paulmccloskeyart.com/archivesportraits.h
tml it's a series of portraits of famous Irish
writers and poet as Seamus Heaney and William

Samuel Beckett. Dealing with real subjects, it
goes without saying that in a certain sense you
"hold" the consistency of the material that you
are going to represent through an artwork...
However, it's clear that the crucial step of this
process is the transfiguration of what we just
"see"... so I would ask you if you visualize your
works before creating: do you know what it will
look like before you begin? I was wondering if
in your opinion experience as starting point is
not an absolutely necessary step for creating
an artwork...
Knowing what a work will look like before beginning,
an interview with
means the work is crafted, contrived and of the
mind. However I see it as vital to have something
to express/say about your subject, some feeling, Sean O’Casey – mixed media
emotion, essence or story, but if my purpose is to
record a superficial likeness then there are much
easier ways to do this, with the use of technology tions throughout your country: it goes
etc. without saying that feedbacks and especially
My intention is to look beyond the subject, whether awards are capable of supporting an artist,
landscape or portraits, to its essence, core and encouraging him: I was just wondering if an
spirit. I may well have an idea or vision of a work award -or better, the expectation of an
before starting but I find attempting to interfere award- could even influence the process of
with the outcome or realisation is more of a an artist... By the way, how much important
hindrance. is for you the feedback of your audience? Do
you ever think to whom will enjoy your Art
If I get out of my own way and allow creation to work when you conceive your pieces?
through me and not of me, then I cannot know the
outcome and the more I allow this process to be, I’m sure there are occasions when artists may
the more I realise that I am merely a catalyst to well be influenced by the expectation of an
divine expression, when this happens for me it’s award, but I believe an artist must never
beyond joyous and that revelation is beyond compromise his work for anything, otherwise it
anything from merely my mind made construct. defeats the purpose of being openly alert to the
process, of allowing divinity, creativity to work
You have exhibited your all around the world through him, once any element in this process
and your creations are in numerous collec- is contrived in any way then it is no longer ho-

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