An insight into Clare’s artistic side

There is a wealth of visual artists drawing on the beauties of Clare or merely using it as a setting for inspiration with many having settled here from other parts of the country and the world.
In a new monthly series by The Clare Champion, the public will get an opportunity to learn about the painters, sculptors, photographers and ceramists working and living in the Banner County.
The artist will outline the inspiration behind the piece of work, the techniques used as well as giving a bit of information about themselves and their artistic background. We start with artist Rena Casey Lewis.
Lisdoonvarna native and Ennis resident Rena Casey Lewis is a painter/photographer and has chosen a painting entitled Vietnam Beauties as her chosen piece of work. Having been a science teacher for 20 years, Rena developed voice problems in 1994 and turned to art.
“I started painting as a way of communicating and expressing myself. Initially, I was a self taught artist but then went on to study painting /photography in the Limerick Senior College with classes also in Gallery 75, Limerick and Ballyvaughan College of Art.
“The thing I love about painting/photography is that it captures a moment in time. I love the edges and textures of the Burren in particular and the West of Ireland in general. Light patterns, colours and the beauty of the land, sea and sky are my inspiration. I love both the subtle and dramatic changes in the weather and seasons and how they affect the quality of light. I tend to paint impressionistic and moody paintings,” she explains.
Rena explores a wide and varied number of themes in her work and has done work that not only captures the innocence of childhood, precious family moments but those that translate dramatic seascapes and landscapes, vibrant flowers and figure studies. She does so through water colours, oils, pastels, acrylics and paintings on silk.
Inspired by a trip to Vietnam and by the Ralph Waldo Emerson quote, ‘Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful, for beauty is God’s handwriting’ Rena painted her featured work, which shows three Vietnamese school girls on the way to school.
“They were so elegant and so beautiful just chatting away,” Rena says.
“Watercolour is my first love but because I wanted a dreamy soft result and a suggestion of a bicycle, I finger painted using oils. It is a technique I use often on big landscape paintings to give an impressionistic effect. I use water based oils for this as they are less toxic. I then fill in the finer detail in the end with a brush,” she added.
Rena is currently building up a body of work to feature in an exhibition in Northern Ireland and has exhibited numerous times locally and at The Hunt Museum and in Cavan County Museum. Anyone interested in finding out more about Rena should visit her website, www.renacaseylewis.net.