Edwina McDonagh

b. 1973, Ireland

Composition is very important to me. I place strong emphasis on colour, line, space and form. I work on paper, canvas and board. Previous work involved organic images, i.e. walnuts and fruit. I used the walnut as my image to create shape and form, and the fruit was used as my colour source. Later I developed my whole work on fruit, using it as my object and colour source. These paintings and drawings are simplified forms built up with layers of paint, where I would wash away some of the paint and draw onto the canvas.

I then went on to use my father as my subject matter. I based paintings on a certain amount of memory, but almost as importantly on colour, atmosphere and presence. To represent my father, I used such objects as a chair, pipes and ties. Colour not only comes from the objects themselves, but also from memory and emotion. I used the idea of a shed because this is where a lot of the past is kept and where I found some of the objects I painted.

At present I am working on childhood memories and some of the memories from the fairytales I grew up with. I will also continue to use images from previous work, i.e. fruit and my father. My work is about myself and how I choose to remember certain events in my life. I will continue to place great importance on colour, line, space and form.

(Text: friends + neighbours catalogue, 2000)