Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird

In December of last year I posted an image of this painting after my first days work of what was to become a seven week long studio residency in the city of Barcelona. The paintings title comes from a wonderful Zen like poem written by Wallace Stevens back in the 1950's.

During the past couple of months I took this painting back into my studio and made some subtle finishing touches to it including line work and glazing. I had thought it needed more work for quite a period, but having lived with the work for some time realised that not to be the case.

This painting will travel with me to the United States and feature in my coming Los Angeles solo show 'Communion' which opens on Friday October 30th in Pasadena.

Hope you like it. - RH

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird - oil on museum panel - 70x50cm
For Pricing and Reserve please email, info@richardhearns.com 

Ancient Wall, Fertile Rock.

Just close to my home is a Burren road I often walk. If you head out west on that road you find an area of untouched limestone pavement crisscrossed by ancient walls.

This painting depicts an area of the limestone paving and a part of one such wall which sits close to the road. Many times I've stopped and sat there, in this sheltered area to study the rock forms. This painting becomes almost a portrait of that wall. For me it's a celebration of what many might consider an unremarkable place.

Just as I write this I'm reminded of friend whom I first met shortly after I came to this area in 2009. Luka Bloom is a singer/songwriter, musician and performer. He wrote a song entitled 'The Fertile Rock' and to my surprise and amazement the lyrics of the first verse are as follows:

In the flowering desert
Lies the heart and soul of man
Find a deep well to draw from
And give back as you can
In the moonlight musicians
Hear their tunes in the Burren wind
And in the shadows
Where an old faith's sheltered
The painter's work begins.

This painting will appear in my coming Los Angeles solo exhibition on Friday October 30th.

Ancient Wall, Fertile Rock - oil on panel - 70 x 50cm.

Communion

Old men ought to be explorers.
Here or there does not matter.
We must be still and still moving.
Into another intensity.
For another union, a deeper communion.

- from Four Quartets,  East Coker (1940) by T.S. Eliot

Over the years I've been blessed enough to live in some of the most beautiful parts of the west of Ireland. I even grew up in a stunning Irish seaside village called Malahide. About five years ago I spent time, the best part of a year in fact, just outside the town of Westport in County Mayo. My home and studio were located on the quay area of Clew bay. Many evenings I would walk or run along the coast road close to the shoreline. My memories of my time spent there are of a wonderful communing with nature.

This painting is Reserved for my coming Los Angeles Solo Show which opens on Friday October 30th 2015 in Pasadena, C.A. More details to follow. Please contact me for advanced reserve and pricing of for this piece -  info@richardhearns.com

Communion - oil on panel - 70 x 50cm

As Kingfishers Catch Fire.

As kingfishers catch fire, dragonflies draw flame; 

As tumbled over rim in roundy wells 

Stones ring; like each tucked string tells, each hung bell's 

Bow swung finds tongue to fling out broad its name; 

Each mortal thing does one thing and the same: 

Deals out that being indoors each one dwells; 

Selves — goes itself; myself it speaks and spells, 

Crying Whát I dó is me: for that I came.

From 'As Kingfishers Catch Fire' by Gerard Manley Hopkins.

For the past couple of weeks and for the next month my work will have a primary focus on landscape and still life studio painting. I know it's been some time since I shared finished works with you in any order but its my hope to be able to this, and keep to a strict routine and sequence in the build up to my coming New York and Los Angeles exhibitions. 

Over the past few months I have been working on a number of landscape and still life paintings and recently brought a number of them to a finish. The painting below, which I named 'As Kingfishers Catch Fire', borrows its title from a poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins. I thought of this poem many times as I was working on this specially commissioned piece for an incredible friend and supporter of my work. 

The composition was built up slowly over a period of a few months. It's a representational depiction of a view across the Galway bay towards Connamara and out to the Atlantic Ocean past the Burren hills and headlands of Cappabhaile, Gleninagh and Blackhead.

As Kingfishers Catch Fire - oil on panel - 70 x 50cm

Private Collection, Washington DC.

Portrait of a Pilgrim and US Tour

Since returning from Germany in early August I've been so busy preparing myself for a coming trip and exhibits in the United States that I have had little time to catch up on my blog posts. Apologies for the recent inconsistencies here. I've found myself using Instagram to post updates more often as it works well on mobile devices. Blogger still has some catching up to do in that respect.

One big bit of news I have to share is that Timothy Cardinal Dolan the Archbishop of New York visited me here at my studio in Ballyvaughan, County Clare during his recent pilgramage to Knock from the US. (see article attached)

For the next four weeks I'm really going to focus on studio time. I've to continue to create and work on finishing a body of paintings to travel with me to the United States on October 1st and the opportunity to really immerse myself in my painting over the coming weeks is exciting.

We will catch up soon. Promise!

- Richard

Memories of Place

The Alps on the German Austrian boarder hugged the town of Bad Reichenhall majestically and towered upwards behind our workspaces were I'd been invited a to create paintings as part of a 2015 workshop, 'Schöpfungsakte zwischen Chaos und Kosmos' (Between Chaos and Cosmos) at the Kunstakademie.

In the short time I spent there this year I learnt a great deal about myself and the processes I employ in the creation of my abstract works.

Five large bespoke linen canvas stretchers were specially made for me by college boesner art store technicians, and work began in hast. My energy was fed by the beautiful landscape and strong group dynamic in the studios. The power of the mountains was palpable!

The experience of my time dispatched in Bavaria has been renewing and immense.
Sincere thanks to Ralph Gelbert for the kind invite and opportunity, and a special note of thanks to the Director of the Kunstakademie, Dr. Brigitte Hausmann for the warm welcome and all the staff who were incredibility professional, supportive and always on hand to help.

- Richard

A view from the studios across the lawn of the old salt mills.

A studio shot of some works in progress.

View across a nearby Alpine lake.

Studio Materials.

Komposition, 2015 - oil on linen - 178 x 133 cm.

Bad Reichenhall seen from the foothills close by.

Abstrakten, 2015 - oil on linen - 178 x 133 cm.

Not 'Bad' at All!

This day last year I was hard at work (and play if I'm totally honest) taking part in an international artists week-long symposium in Germany.

This Sunday I fly to Salzburg, Austria where I've been invited to assist an associate professor of arts, Ralph Gelbert, at a week-long studio based abstract painting workshop at the Kunstakademie in Bad Reichenhall.

I'm so excited to visit Salzburg, a UNESCO heritage city surrounded by the Alps and the birth place of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart! In the little research I've done the place looks spectacular - you know it was the backdrop to the musical play and film The Sound of Music!

There will be so much to see and do there, but if my last visit to the symposium is any reflection of what will take place there will be a lot of studio hours put in too. Work hard - Play hard!! I'm sure that will become our mantra for the week.

Five bespoke canvases await me in the studio and I'm looking forward to getting into that special place of excitement, creativity, mystery and surprise.

- Richard

Lost and Found : In Art

Lost and Found :  In Art
An interview by Andrew Hamilton.

'Inspiration Project'.

John Hopkins students from Baltimore, Maryland in the U.S visited me at my studio for a walk and talk at the request of their photographic tutors Howard Ehrenfeld and Phyllis Ann Berger early last month. Jared Posher who hails from Minnesota featured and combined important objects and words from my life story as part of his 'Inspiration Project'.

Altogether in front of my studio in the Burren, Ballyvaughan, Co. Clare.

Space Time and Documentation.

Wanted to share with you all some images of my Works at my latest solo show - Crucible.
Tomorrow I'll be taking this installation down but am happy to report that with the help of photographer and videographer Eoin Collins we have made a great job of documenting the works in space during the shows running time.

Over the last few days while welcoming and inviting people from the community and further a field to the exhibit I've been sizing and priming new canvases in anticipation and excitement to begin painting again on a new body of work.

I'm looking forward to wrapping up this exhibit. It's been another great experience for me and massively successful with regards to increasing my knowledge base, vocabulary, and reaching new collectors. This exhibition has been the first to showcase my large scale informal abstract works and the positive response has been overwhelming.

Sincere thanks to all for the wonderful support received both online and first hand at the show.

Onwards, Forwards.

- Richard Hearns