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BIO
Born in Youghal Co.Cork. where she now lives and works as a full-time artist. Her first exhibition in Cork in 2004 was of monochromatic watercolours based on the landscape and light of West Clare. A landscape that has resonated with her since her student days at Limerick School of Art & Design, where she graduated in Sculpture in 1991. As the work developed, she began to work in oil on canvas. In 2016 Diane started plein air painting in the Burren, grief and escape being the fuel for those initial trips. Quickly though, the Burren became less of a destination and more of a mindset. She has been returning on a regular basis ever since, with month-long residencies in the Burren College of Art. These residencies gave her the chance to completely immerse herself in the landscape. An incredible experience, it immediately impacted her practice and will keep informing how she works. In 2023 she was one of the artists selected by artist Nuala Clarke for a solo exhibition with Artnetdlr. This recent collection ‘Winterage’ isn’t reality but the artist’s own multiverse, darker than her previous work, at times trippy and more of a dreamscape – like residual images we sometimes carry into real life in the spilt second of waking.
Diane has had her work selected for various exhibitions including The Royal Hibernian Academy 189th and 191st Annual Exhibition, LHQ gallery Cork County Council, Lavit Gallery Cork, The Sirius Gallery Cobh, The Signal Arts Centre Bray, Boyle Arts Festival, Birr Arts Festival, ArtnetDLR, Ranelagh Arts Centre, The United Arts Club Dublin, Artlink/ 126 Gallery, Artform Annual 44 Waterford, The Courthouse Gallery and Studios Ennistymon and The Holy Art Gallery London. Her work is held in corporate and private collections both nationally and internationally.
STATEMENT
I am a painter. I work both outdoors and in my studio. Once I’ve established what I’m drawn to I sketch, make colour studies and photograph. Fieldwork is crucial, helping me focus my mind, tracking the way light changes throughout the day and how a particular scene can evoke an emotional response. For the last 8yrs I’ve been exploring and recording the Burren, Co. Clare. on a regular basis. In 2021 and 2022 I was offered month long residencies in The Burren College of Art. This gave me a chance to immerse myself in the landscape at an intense level but also at my own pace. It was during this time that I delved into the subject of winterage. The ancient farming tradition practiced by Burren farmers for thousands of years. It’s the seasonal movement of livestock to the Burren uplands in late October. It was during my initial residency, having a front row seat to the drama of winterage that I introduced the first cow into the work. I challenged myself further the next time by moving to a much larger scale. This move ignited a welcome return to drawing from my imagination and memory, all checked against hundreds of references accumulated over the years. Throughout this series the cow stays in the picture. This new work culminated in my recent solo exhibition, Winterage. This winterage isn’t reality but my own multiverse. For me, the Burren has become less of a destination and more of a mindset.
CV
E: dianemageeart@gmail.com W: https://www.dianemagee.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diane_magee_art/?hl=en
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DianeMageeART/ Linkedn: linkedin.com/in/diane-magee-06420188
Education:
Masters in Education, University College Limerick 2000
Postgraduate H.dip. Art & Design Teaching, LSAD 1993
BA Fine Art, Sculpture, LSAD 1991
Solo Exhibitions (selected)
2026 Cnoc Buí, arts centre Bray
2025 Signal Arts Centre Bray
2023 Artnetdlr ,Walters Dunlaoghaire, ‘Winterage
2017 The Nest Gallery, Dunlaoghaire, ‘Portraits in Pencil’
2014 Smock Alley Theatre, Temple Bar, ‘Fieldwork’
Group Exhibitions (selected)
2024 Art Riddler Exhibition, LHQ gallery, Artform/ Mount Congrieve
Duanamaise Arts Centre,, Ar Seiz Avel, Parliament Buildings Rennes France
Lavit gallery, curated by gallerist Kevin Kavanagh
2023 Dunamaise Arts Centre,
LHQ gallery Cork County Council, Small Things Like These
Cnoc Buí Arts Centre, Uilinn West Cork Arts Centre
Artlink FortDunree, Ranelagh Arts Centre , Signal Art Gallery
Gallery Omata, Lavit Gallery,
2022 Artnetdlr ‘Pause’, Artlink/126 Gallery, Boyle Open Arts Festival
Birr Open Arts Festival, The Courthouse Gallery & Studios
Signal Arts Centre, Lavit Gallery, The Holy Art Gallery, London
2021 Artnetdlr, ‘Emergence’ The Courthouse Gallery & Studios
ARTFORM Waterford, Royal Hibernian Academy 191st Annual Exhibition Lavit Gallery
2020 The Courthouse Gallery & Studios, Lavit Gallery, ArtnetDLR ‘Transition’ Signal Arts Centre
Lavit Gallery,
2019 Royal Hibernian Academy 189th Annual Exhibition, Ranelagh Arts Centre,
2018 Ranelagh Arts Centre,
2016 The United Arts Club, Winter Exhibition
2016 The United Arts Club, Summer Exhibition
2015 Smock Alley Theatre, ‘Postcards’
2014 The Sirius Arts Centre Cobh
AWARDS
Art Riddler - The Evans Award
Shortlisted for Bucolica award, Mount Congrieve
Collaborations
2024 dlr LexIcon, Crosscurrents (selected)
2022 Darragh Amelia audio - visual
2021 SubLIME, Artnetdlr, Metamorphis (selected)
Residencies
Cill Rialaig Arts Centre, April 2025
The Tyrone Guthrie Centre July 2024
The Tyrone Guthrie Centre March 2023
The Burren College of Art November 2022
The Burren College of Art October 2021
Public Realm
Contemporary Irish Art Society
Chapter One Restaurant, Dublin
Tomas Healy Builders Ltd. Limerick
C.G. Motherway & Co. Accountant, Cork
Montes of Kathmandu,Dublin
Host & Co, Dublin
Dynamic Resources, Dublin
Bourke Builders, Dublin
Collections
Artworks held in private collections nationally and internationally
Featured/Publications
The Irish Times Magazine 2025
The Gloss.ie The Irish Times 2025
The Sunday Times, January 2024
The Gloss Magazine, The Irish Times, October ‘23
House & Garden UK Condè Naste Jan-March, ‘23
The Gloss Magazine, The Irish Times, 2014
Public Talks
2024 MÒR Artists Collective
2024 Lavit Gallery
2023 Backwater Artists Network
2022 Burren College of Art
2021 Burren College of Art
2017 The Nest Gallery, Dunlaoghaire
2016 University of Limerick
Collectives
Visual Arts Ireland member
Affiliate member of Business to Arts,
Lavit Gallery member
Mór Artists Collective,
Backwater Artists Network,
Sample Studios
The Signal Arts Centre,
The Ranelagh Arts Centre,
Artnetdlr,
.