About Lynda Cookson

2008-08-04T11:13:00.000-07:00

I am a Creative Painter and I concentrate on capturing the energy of my subject. I work on creating a sense of freedom, although there is a certain element of structure to what I do.

Using colour, movement and the life essence of my subject, I work with the 'behind music'; I am conscious of the masks of protection and the layers of learning that people develop and build up through their lives and I work with how they disguise themselves and learn to live with their masks and layers; how they achieve their level of wisdom.

The analogy of the ‘behind music’ is all the parts of a symphony concert in their separate forms; all the patterns of sound, the individual notes, the individual instruments, the emotions elicited, the energy expended and the people involved, which unite to make the complete piece of music so beautiful, soul-reaching, acceptable and exciting to listeners.

The parallel is the lives people are living, learning and sculpting to make themselves better and more wise; to make themselves more beautiful, valuable and acceptable to the society they belong in, while still coping with the energy needed to smooth out every-day stresses in meeting their challenges.

The manifestation of my philosophy can be found in the many layers of colour peeping through and giving life to my subjects. I prefer to mix colours on the canvas, allowing their purity to dictate, and only occasionally to mix colours on the palette before application.

True inspiration comes when I am excited by a subject to the point of sleeping badly at night and being excited to get up early in the morning to get to the canvas. I use oils on artist-prepared stretched linen canvas or linen-covered board, occasionally using my own handmade paper and various fabrics for texture beneath the paint. I like the surface to have a ‘tooth’ and much of my work is done with palette knives. I tend to be a colourist and build up layers of pure colour often allowing the lower layer to show through, giving movement and life to the painting.

Once the painting is complete it's important for me to be impelled to look at it again and again and to feel the butterflies of pleasure in what has been created – otherwise I paint over it!'

Updated July 2011

Work Sold In :
UK, Ireland, South Africa, Namibia, many parts of the USA, Canada, France, Spain, Dominican Republic

Galleries :
The Cong Art Gallery, Co Mayo, Ireland
The Ladies Buttery, Cong, Co Mayo, Ireland
The Painter's Palette, Moycullen, Co Galway, Ireland

Fine Art Auctioneers (Secondary Art Market) :
Adams Fine Art Auctioneers, Dublin, Ireland
Dolan's Fine Art Auctioneers, Galway, Ireland
Galway Auctioneers, Kilcolgan, Co Galway, Ireland

Collections of Work :
Mr L Murrin, Dawn Foods, Naas, Dublin, Ireland
Mr A Boyd, Arizona, USA
Ms S J Lynch, Galway, Ireland
Mrs Nancy McAllister, Guntersville, Alabama, USA
Mr N McLoughlin, Ross Communications, Dublin, Ireland
Offices of the 'Now' Magazine Group - Galway, Limerick and Cork, Ireland
Ms Meghan Scott, Gr. Manchester, UK
Radisson Blu Hotel, Galway, Ireland

Commissions :
South Africa : Mr D Bose (3 paintings)
South Africa : Mrs B de Villiers (2 paintings)
United Kingdom : Mr A Firth (1 painting)
South Africa : Mr Victor Ferraz (1 charcoal sketch)

Professional Member :
Visual Artists Ireland

Media Interviews :
* March 2006 - TV1 and Radio 1 Barcelona, Spain
* 2004 - Profile article in Galway Now magazine (Ireland)
* December 2009 - BBC Northern Ireland, Radio Ulster, Arts Extra
* early 2010 three local radio stations to promote "Tea 'n Turps"
* many newspaper articles and press releases

Publications of Paintings :
'Summer Field' published on front cover of WMS Wealth Management Services Quarterly magazine Spring 2008 (USA)
'Dolphin Abstract' published Events Quarterly Spring 2008 (Canada)

Designer for :
Dezign Inc. Harare, Zimbabwe, Africa (producers of T-shirts, aprons, paper items, mugs etc) - unpaid position
T shirts on www.RedBubble.com

Logo Design for :
2005 'Art in the West' exhibition, Galway, Ireland
2006 'Southern Lights' exhibition of South African artists in Armagh, N Ireland
2007 'The Cake Baker', Manchester, UK
2008 Ferne Krystal, Musician, Singer and Lyricist, UK
2009 'Just Wait For Me!' Restaurant Staff Training, Cape Town, South Africa

Studies :
Michaelis Art School, Cape Town, South Africa
GMIT, Galway, Ireland
Art Space, Galway, Ireland

Digital Art :
Digital Show for the Liverpool Biennial - Independents 2006
Digital paintings sold from www.artocracy.com

Photo Stock Library :
Big Stock Photo -
Stock Photos, Search and Download Now!

Residencies :
January 2007 - Cill Rialaig Famine Village, Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, Ireland
January 2008 - Cill Rialaig Famine Village, Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, Ireland (Winter and Summer)
January 2009 - Cill Rialaig Famine Village, Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, Ireland

Exhibitions (past and still to come) :
July 2011 - Solo - Athy Suite, Radisson Blu Hotel, Galway, Ireland
October 2010 - Ballybane, Galway, Ireland
August 2010 - St Patrick's Trian, Armagh, Co Armagh, N Ireland
July/Aug 2010 - "Riding High" with guest artists, Moycullen, Galway, Ireland
July 2010 - "Riding High" D'Arcy Suite, Radisson Blu Hotel, Galway, Ireland
April 2010 - "Tea 'n Turps" Gallery 23, Kinsale, Co Cork, Ireland
December 2009 - "Tea 'n Turps" Sq Space Gallery, Belfast, N Ireland
October/November 2009 - Solo Exh. Sala Barna, Barcelona, Spain
June 2009 - Sol Exh. Thinkk Creative Gallery, Limerick
December 2008 - Group Christmas Exh. Bold Art Gallery, Galway, Ireland
December 2008 - Group Christmas Exh. Sq Space, Belfast, N Ireland
December 2008 - Group Christmas Exh. B Artistic, Malaysia
September/October 2008 - Solo exhibition, Sala Barna, Barcelona, Spain
July 2008 - Solo exhibition for Galway Arts Festival, Radisson SAS Hotel, Galway, Ireland
August 2008 - Solo exhibition, Galway Race Week, Radisson SAS Hotel, Galway, Ireland
December 2007 - Angela Woulfe Gallery, Limerick, Ireland
March 2007 - Anton's Cafe, Galway, Ireland
December 2006 - Christmas group exh, Bold Gallery, Galway, Ireland
September 2006 - Solo Exh, Fisheries Tower, Galway, Ireland
August 2006 - Solo Exh, Airfield Trust, Dublin, Ireland
July 2006 - The River Walk Exhibition, Galway Arts Week, Galway, Ireland
March 2006 - Group exh, Sala Barna, Barcelona, Spain
March 2006 - Group exh, 8x8, Fisheries Tower, Galway, Ireland
February 2006 - 'Floral Collage' group exh, Bold Art Gallery, Galway, Ireland

December 2005 - Represented Ireland at Florence Biennale, Italy

To shorten this list (!) - prior to this time both group and solo exhibitions in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Spain, Tanzania (Africa), Berlin, Namibia and South Africa.

WRITING :

Artist Profile Columnist for 'Galway Now' 'Limerick Now' and 'Cork Now' magazines From January 2005 to December 2010.

Contributor to :
'Moving In' interior decorating magazine, Dublin, Ireland
'Living It' magazine for the over 45's, Dublin, Ireland
'Boots 'n All' internet travel magazine
'Great Britain and Ireland's Best Hotels' travel guide - Galway hotels for 2008
'Irish Homes' interior decorating magazine

Author :
1994 - 'How To Make Handmade Paper' republished 2005
ISBN 0 9550272 2 5

2009 - 'How To Make Handmade Paper' the ebook (on both Internet and CD)
ISBN 0 9550272 4 1

2005 - 'The eArt Directory' - a workbook for artists wanting to market their work on the internet and art lovers needing to find artists
ISBN 0 9550272 0 9

2009 - Second Edition of 'The eArt Directory' the e-book (on both Internet and CD)
ISBN 0 9550272 3 3

2009 - "Tea 'n Turps. Taking Tea with Artists" A humorous collection of artist profiles featuring more than 65 full colour images of their work.
ISBN 978 1608 608 485

Curator and Contributor :
'Art in the West 2005' catalogue of paintings, poetry and essays
ISBN 0 9550272 1 7

Press Trips :
2006 - Abruzzo, Italy - art course for Point 101

You can also find my profile here : LYNDA COOKSON