One of the country’s most celebrated artists Gemma Guihan will hold an exhibition of paintings for one night only at 8pm this Thursday, November 30, at The Pantry Café, Portlaoise.
Gemma staged her first ever solo exhibition in Mountmellick all of 30 years ago and these days her works are much sought after and treasured.
An award-winning painter and sculptor based in Mountmellick, she is the recipient of numerous distinctions including the Abbey Stain Glass award by the Royal Hibernian Academy. Her work is held in private collections throughout Europe, the United States and Australia.
Gemma is noted for her stunning oil paintings of pastoral scenes. Lazy summer cattle and sunlit ewes with their lambs will be on show alongside still lifes of delicate duck egg blues resting on dusty shelves.
Joyous daffodils, late summer roses and a painting of a young lady gathering flowers in a magical swirl of mauves and greens will feature on the night.
Soft pinks and evening greens of Emo Court gardens, seascapes of turquoise blue, and resting boats at sunset will be complemented by her latest work of the Slieve Bloom in moon light, where stately figures merge in an ethereal procession in ‘The Knights Return’.
Gemma is inspired by nature interacting with light that transforms the midland landscape into the extraordinary. She has exhibited at the Royal Hibernian Academy and had numerous sold out shows at The Molesworth Gallery Dublin.
Her extensive back catalogue includes paintings in oils, watercolours, pen and ink drawings and sculptings. Many of the landscapes which inspire her body of work and are depicted in her paintings will be familiar to viewers as they are taken from the Slieve Blooms, Ballyfin Demesne, Emo Court as well as traditional farming scenes and local waterways.
For the first time,a limited edition of archival pigment prints of her paintings will be available for sale on the night.
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