Page 26 - Re<>Dux Arts Magazine: Autumn 2014

Paul M cClo skey

Cubicles, Detail (Oil on Linen)

The rugged Irish landscape and famously unsettled weather create variations of light that
have greatly inspired the work of visual artist Paul McCloskey. Watching light dance on the
side of a rocky cliff or shimmer in the corner of a field, he creates images that encourage
viewers to feel the beauty and spirit of the world around us. Within these ever-changing
views of nature, McCloskey also reminds us of something deeper – our universal
interconnectedness to a greater whole.

McCloskey’s earliest exhibition dates back to 1994, when his Lough Derg Series (featured
here) became part of the Patrick Kavanagh Heritage Centre (County Monaghan) permanent
collection. Kavanagh (1904-1967) was a poet and author of Lough Derg, a piece that he
chose not to publish during his lifetime.

A native of Ireland who continues to live and work there, McCloskey says he is influenced by
the landscape but uses it as a means to express the divinity that exists all around us. His
work suggests the many dimensions of the eternal spirit and internal self, the beginning and
the end.

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