Tag Archives: Philip Brennan

SCARIFF Library Gallery is to host an exhibition of watercolours that were first hung in early 2020, but never seen by the public because of the pandemic. In conjunction with Clare Arts Office the Library Gallery welcomes back ‘Clarescapes’ – an exhibition of watercolours by Philip Brennan. Following its initial showing in Ennis in late 2019, part of this exhibition was then toured to Kilkee and Scariff. The paintings were hung in the Scariff Library Gallery in March 2020, but the showing never happened due to the Covid-19 outbreak a few days later. This exhibition features a selection of paintings from around the county and Philip’s fascination with so many aspects of his native county is reflected in the many themes on display. There are seascapes and landscapes, with inspiration from Clare’s rivers, coast, weather, history, wildlife, old stories, and music. Each painting tries to capture a moment in the Clare year, everything including the Tau cross at Kilnaboy, Skylarks having a territorial …

AN exhibition entitled ‘Rineanna/Shannon, Time Past,’ by renowned Clare-based artist Philip Brennan, will run for six weeks in the airport’s transit lounge. The paintings, which were influenced by a collection of photos taken at the airport from the 1930s onwards, depict aircraft from a bygone era and the airport environs. Wings of both metal and feather feature in this series of water colour paintings by the Newmarket-on-Fergus native, due to the airport’s location in the original townland of Rineanna which means “meeting place of the birds”. Speaking about the collection, Philip said, “I have been working on this project since 2018 and am finally delighted to have it completed and on display in the very place it was inspired by. “Since 1974, I have spent a great amount of time in the environs of the airport and have lived nearby since then. “In that time, I’ve done a lot of observation of the bird life at the estuary and the …

CLARE’S vibrant arts sector is the envy of many counties. Renowned globally for its traditional music, the Banner county not only produces some of the finest creative talents, it also attracts musicians, dancers and artists who come here for inspiration and in the hope that a thriving artistic scene will support them in making a living on the path less travelled. Now, in the context of ongoing pandemic restrictions, access to audiences at venues like galleries, concert venues and pubs, and to collaborators, is shut down, for now. So too are vital income streams. While some government support is available in the form of the Pandemic Unemployment Payment, as well as a COVID-19 Crisis Response Award from the Arts Council, many are facing serious set-backs financially and creatively. Renowned Newmarket-based visual artist Philip Brennan faced the extraordinary experience recently of having a freshly-installed exhibition hanging in empty halls behind the doors of a locked building. After more than two decades …

Newmarket-on-Fergus based artist Philip Brennan to unveil 23rd solo exhibition NEWMARKET-ON-FERGUS based artist, Philip Brennan, will unveil his 23rd solo exhibition in Ennis on Wednesday September 11 after taking a six year break from exhibiting. The exhibition, entitled Clare Moments, feature 43 paintings which in the main comprise of watercolours, with a few mixed medium pieces. Philip who is based in Stonehall, has always had a fascination with landscapes and wildlife, and it is no surprise that these feature heavily in his latest works, but there are still a handful which capture people, although as he says “not nearly enough”. Clare Moments is to be officially launched by Seosamh O Conchubhair at the Temple Gate Hotel in Ennis at 8pm on Wednesday next, with a preview at 6pm, and it will be on display until the following evening at 8pm. Philip will then follow this with a three week exhibition of the same paintings at Culturlann Sweeney in Kilkee in …