Gerry Davis—Studio

Studio is an exhibition of paintings where I explore the nature of contemporary artist’s spaces, particularly those in the artist-run Wickham St Studios, in Limerick.
This is a studio I have been involved in since it’s foundation in 2009, and in that time I have seen artists of many persuasions make work there. As I began to make these paintings I noticed more and more the remnants of these artist’s work scattered throughout the building, and noticed over time fragments of work accumulated, leaving an indelible record of the studio's history. After a while I garnered the sense of being a documentarian painter, painting a space before it’s next incarnation, either in the hands of a new studio member or an existing one. Each painting serves as a little snapshot in time of a place that creeps along, always in flux, and always serving as a vehicle for something outside of itself, in actual production of work or in the intention. So there is a sense of transience to the scenes depicted, and various strata of information in each painting.

The intricacies of these spaces are endlessly interesting to paint, the ramshackle walls and stained floors etc, and making these paintings has served the purpose of recontextualizing the familiar for me, forcing me to consider the difficult nature of maintaining a practice today, and wondering about the intentions and hopes of other artists who work in this country.

Biography:

Originally from Cahir, Co Tipperary, Gerry Davis graduated from LSAD in 2009 with a degree in Fine Art (Painting). Since then he has painted and exhibited regularly. Examples of exhibitions include What Has Been Shall Always Never Be Again at Ormston House, Limerick, The Forest That Hears and The Field That Sees at Damer House, Roscrea and a solo show, Burrow, at TACTIC, Cork. This year he received a Merit Award at The Golden Fleece Award and is shortlisted for the Hennessy Portrait Prize 2016.