gregory seán sheehan
visual artist
visual artist
Whoever might be reading these words right now — welcome to this website! On the following pages, you will find a presentation of artworks. This presentation has been compiled to introduce the viewer to my work — providing background information, and elucidating the context and processes involved in it’s creation. All enquiries welcome. Please use the contact form.
Slumbering
[ almost out of sight ]
Although firmly implanted in the unique topography of a particular landscape, this work would not be described as landscape painting in a geographical, pictorial, or realistic sense.
For more than thirty years, I have been working with mountain turf collected from blanket bog land in Ireland. A personal interest in this archaic substance prompted me to delve deeper into the underlying significance of this dark, inspiring, natural phenomenon.
My investigation concentrates on the transposed perspective of a landscape, my attention directed toward the innate processes inherent in the landscape's formation and the transformational qualities contained therein.
Referencing the layered accumulation of the source material, the majority of these pieces are structured horizontally. A substructure of mountain turf and granite, which have, in most instances, been previously applied to the surface, facilitates an animated interaction between colour, form, and content.
Initial applications, whether on paper or canvas, always tended to reveal the wild amorphous origins of the material, adding tinges of anarchy, ambiguity and mystery, all in equal proportions.
Since neither turf nor peat have ever been traditional painting mediums, there were no reference books to consult—no accumulated knowledge to build upon. So, the only alternative was to commence a journey of exploration, trial and error! Taking up the challenge, my curiosity, provided the necessary impetus.
In the course of this process, the material gradually began to open up, disclosing many of its distinctive and particular anomalies. The inquiry lead to a space where perceptions of time, place, and indeed, mortality became significantly interrelated.
Reflecting the wild, windswept mountain bog from which it was extracted, the contentious nature of this particular turf appealed to me from the beginning.
This mountain turf turned out to be inspiring, idiosyncratic, evocative, and I was in for one surprise after another. This fiery, expressive medium acted upon me as a catalyst, setting multitudes of ideas and impressions into motion.
For more than thirty years, I have been working with mountain turf collected from blanket bog land in Ireland. A personal interest in this archaic substance prompted me to delve deeper into the underlying significance of this dark, inspiring, natural phenomenon.
My investigation concentrates on the transposed perspective of a landscape, my attention directed toward the innate processes inherent in the landscape's formation and the transformational qualities contained therein.
Referencing the layered accumulation of the source material, the majority of these pieces are structured horizontally. A substructure of mountain turf and granite, which have, in most instances, been previously applied to the surface, facilitates an animated interaction between colour, form, and content.
Initial applications, whether on paper or canvas, always tended to reveal the wild amorphous origins of the material, adding tinges of anarchy, ambiguity and mystery, all in equal proportions.
Since neither turf nor peat have ever been traditional painting mediums, there were no reference books to consult—no accumulated knowledge to build upon. So, the only alternative was to commence a journey of exploration, trial and error! Taking up the challenge, my curiosity, provided the necessary impetus.
In the course of this process, the material gradually began to open up, disclosing many of its distinctive and particular anomalies. The inquiry lead to a space where perceptions of time, place, and indeed, mortality became significantly interrelated.
Reflecting the wild, windswept mountain bog from which it was extracted, the contentious nature of this particular turf appealed to me from the beginning.
This mountain turf turned out to be inspiring, idiosyncratic, evocative, and I was in for one surprise after another. This fiery, expressive medium acted upon me as a catalyst, setting multitudes of ideas and impressions into motion.
