Aisling Drennan is an abstract painter originally from Lisdoonvarna, North Co. Clare. She has a Masters in Fine Art degree from Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London, UK (2014) & a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art (First), Galway- Mayo Institute of Technology, IRE (2011).
Drennan has a practice rooted in the material curiosities and playfulness of oil paint. Currently, her work is concerned with stone wall formations- their heaviness of form yet lightness of appearance. Studies of stone walls are abstracted and etched into layers of paintwork- constructed, deconstructed, scratched, rubbed and finally reapplied to form a new skin and begin the process over; a method of finding and losing the painting until visually robust.
Her practice is influenced by the abstract expressionist movement and the expressive content of her own experience as a former professional dancer with Riverdance- The Show. Artists such as Joan Mitchel, Sean Scully and Willem de Kooning have informed her development arriving at its current state of visual dialogue in abstract painting.
Solo shows include Skellig, Graham Hunter Gallery, London, UK (2020), Paint Tangling, Graham Hunter Gallery, London, UK (2018), Conceal/Reveal, 5th Base Gallery, London, UK, (2017) and group exhibitions include the Royal Ulster Academy’s Annual Exhibition, Belfast, NI (2020), Elevate, The Shard, London, UK (2019) & London Irish Art, Central Hall Museum, London, UK (2015).
Drennan was a 2020 Arts Bursary award recipient from the Women’s Irish Network in conjunction with the UK Irish Embassy. In 2019 she was a selected artist in residence at Cill Rialaig Artists Centre, Co.Kerry and in 2018 was shortlisted for the John Moore’s painting prize, Jacksons Open painting prize and the Visual Art Open. She was Fujitsu’s featured artist for their 2017 global recruitment campaign and has been noted by State magazine as “one to watch”. In 2011 she won the Freyer award for excellence in contemporary painting from the Royal Dublin Society graduate awards.
Drennan has been previously funded by Clare Arts Office, the Arts Council of Ireland and shortlisted for the Fullbright Scholarship fund. She is a member of Visual Artists Ireland. Her work is part of international private art collections and has previously been commissioned by ABA Associates, London, UK.