Chip
off the old block
One
thing you can say about Naomi Sex, whose “20/20 Hindsight”
exhibition opens in Draíocht’s first floor gallery this
week – she didn’t lick it off the stones!
“Growing up in our house, there was a huge amount of artistic
activity happening constantly,” says the Cork-born artist. “All
of which pointed me in the direction of becoming an artist - it was
kind of inevitable. I have five brothers, two of whom also studied fine
art at N.C.A.D. I have an uncle and aunt who are artists and who are
both lecturers at Limerick College of Art.
“Mums father was a well- known Irish actor and her sister is the
actress Catherine Byrne. Mum’s career is interesting in a lot
of different ways. Her practice as a botanical painter is quite a recent
thing, not more than 12 years old. So, in that time she has achieved
an amazing amount, with her contribution to the Irish Wild Orchid publication,
and having designed the current definitive stamp series.
“This would have all been hugely influential for me and, it was
also a good example of what consistent, focused and hard work can achieve.
When we were kids, mum made props for window displays, which was a good
money earner at the time. We used to help out with the making of the
props and I suppose that’s when I was first exposed to envisaging
things in a space, and also seeing the effects those things had in the
space.”
In fact, Mum Susan was part of the Botanic Gardens exhibition that graced
the first floor gallery in Draíocht before Christmas, which must
be some sort of family record for the Dublin 15 venue!
Naomi Sex grew up in Dublin. She attained an honors degree in Fine Art
Print in 1999 from the National College of Art and Design, Dublin, where
she is currently completing her Masters studies. She joined the Black
Church Print Studio in 2000 and subsequently became one of the Board
of Directors in 2006. Her involvement in prints evolved naturally, she
says.
“I am able to draw, and printmaking can act as an extension of
drawing so it made sense to study it more extensively,” she explains.
“My relationship with etching has grown over the years. It took
me a while to realise why its properties really appealed to my sensibilities.
“Printmaking can often be perceived as a sort of poor mans painting,
but I think this comes from a lack of understanding, especially in terms
of it possessing its own set of strong formal qualities and a definite
aesthetic language. It’s actually quite a different animal to
painting. It’s these formalities of the medium of etching, which
I find relays most effectively the kind of concerns my work is dealing
with.”
Certainly “20/20 Hindsight” is an impressive body of work
and a worthy successor to “Three Works, Three Weeks,” which
garnered great acclaim in the city centre in the autumn. It is a collection
of works old and new, small and large with each piece conveying a set
of circumstances, scenarios or a particular version of events.
Together in the space, they sum up a sense of clarity, or perhaps misjudged
clarity, which is often the case when one looks back at a time or situation
where something of significance has occurred, with a certain degree
of regret or remorse. The underlying concern in relation to the work
is the fallibility, which is inherent in the human condition, resulting
in mistakes, misjudgments and misinterpretations. These scenes are based
on the reflective time after an event has occurred.
It is an exhibition which has come just at the right time for Naomi.
“As a an artist, it is always a great privilege to be given a
space in which to show work and see a couple of years of a on-going
project come together in a very final and realised way,” she says.
“The Draíocht space has a real sense of how a professional
organisation runs and it in terms of my career it has been a pleasure
to work with the team there.”
In typical Draíocht style, primary and secondary school classes
will be invited to explore this exhibition, learn about the process
of etching and create mono-prints of their own. The workshops are limited
to one per class and will take place towards the end of April.
Draíocht will also host one of its high popular family days as
a spin-off from “20:20 Hindsight.” The activity is suitable
for accompanied children aged 5 – 10 years and a team of artists
will help them to learn about etching, explore Naomi Sex’s exhibition
and create their own night skies in that medium. The activity takes
place between 12pm and 3pm on Saturday 26th April and no booking is
necessary, though old clothes definitely are!
“20/20 Hindsight” by Naomi Sex will run in Draíocht’s
first floor gallery until 3rd May 2008.
Admission is free.
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