Project Space: Niall McLaughlin

Niall McLaughlin is taking over CCA's Project Space for the month of September. Niall is using the space to test his new body of work and the relationships between the works by changing the way the paintings are hung throughout the month.

In the Restoration tryptic Niall uses the painting The Visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon by Lavinia Fontana (1552–1614) along with photographs of its restoration as a source for three paintings. The process of painting includes cropping, reassessing colour and line, to tease out a narrative and tone. Often images repeat, the same hand or fold repeats, which the viewer may not even realise are derived from the same image.

Niall Mclaughlin was born in 1997 in Dublin. He was raised in Derry and studied at Manchester School of Art, graduating in 2020 he moved back to Derry to live and work. His work utilizes genres such as portrait or still life whilst drawing from art history, cinema and theology. Using traditional painting techniques the source images are given new contexts within narrative ambiguity.

Supported by the National Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Derry City & Strabane District Council.

Images:
Niall McLaughlin, Restoration (After Fontana), 2022. Oil on Canvas, 120cm x 100cm
Niall McLaughlin, Restoration pt 2 (After Fontana), 2022. Oil on Canvas, 120cm x 100cm
Niall McLaughlin, Restoration pt 3 (After Fontana), 2022. Oil on Canvas, 120cm x 100cm