Upcoming Exhibitions

SCARENTHOOD & Other Stories 
An Exhibition by Nick Roche 
6th November - 18th December 2021

"When we had kids, I didn’t think I’d have to talk to other parents. But when you start sending your babies off to playschool, interacting with the other mams and dads cannot be (politely) avoided. As I sank into a world of house price chit-chat, and guilt over car emissions, I wondered what would I rather be doing with the other parents while our kids were at school? The answer was obvious: HUNTING GHOSTS.

And so, SCARENTHOOD came to be born. An Irish comedy-horror comic book about four strangers that hunt ghosts in the mornings while their kids are at pre-school. They inadvertently disturb an ancient evil beneath the village hall, and the lives of their families come under paranormal threat. It features Irish folklore, reanimated cub scouts and Divil Dogs. And lots of swearing. The artwork displayed in this exhibition contains original black and white artwork (before colours are added for print by Chris O’ Halloran) from SCARENTHOOD, my first attempt at writing and drawing an entirely original comic. It was released in four single issues in 2020 but is now collected in one complete graphic novel."

Nick Roche is a comic book writer and artist, born and tolerated in Wexford Town, and currently exiled in Waterford, full of blaas. Nick is known for his work with Marvel Comics on Amazing Spider-Man: Renew Your Vows, Spider-Man & Deadpool, Machine Man, Death's Head and various covers, and for his time spent on IDW Publishing Transformers series of comics. His most notable work with the robots in disguise is the multi-part Wreckers Saga, one of the franchise's most acclaimed works, the first part of which (Last Stand Of The Wreckers) was voted Greatest Transformers Comic Story Of All Time by IGN.

Breaking The Bubble 
An Exhibition by Rory Draper 
15th January - 26th February 2022
In Conjunction with First Fortnight, The European Mental Health Festival. Opening Night Details TBC.

Breaking the Bubble is a culmination of work by Rory Draper looking at the small things people may do to get out of the frustrating bubble that they can get themselves into. That insidious bubble of inactivity and isolation and deceptive comfort that can remove you from the people around you.

Coming back to Ireland from London after a breakdown/breakthrough three years ago, Rory took some time to build himself up again and adjust to a far quieter and slower environment. Part of Rory's recovery was being cognisant of what he could do and did do that helped him get through the day. This prevented him from being bubbled up in his room, removed from others. Being aware of these small things and how useful they can be, became very useful for Rory during lockdown. It was during that time that Rory started to explore these events visually. Looking at these tiny seemingly insignificant acts or moments of appreciation and composing them on a page and emblazoning them in colour.

The intention is to highlight the seemingly mundane, making these small things bright and shiny, to show that these small actions and appreciations can get you out of a bubble of inactivity and darkness. In this exhibition Rory presents a homage to these moments, making them beautiful and striking to give an insight to the viewer how important they are to him. Rory has amplified colour and adjusted perspective so as to draw the audience in and let the instance sit with them for a while. "My hope is that they will come away thinking about the small moments that keep them out of their bubble."

Rory Draper is a visual artist based in Wexford, having graduated from Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Dublin in 2006 and later from the National College of Art and Design in 2010 Rory then moved to London where he lived and worked for a number of years. Rory then returned to Wexford following a breakdown/breakthrough just before the first COVID-19 Lockdown. During this experience Rory found solace in creating, in  recognition, and in documentation.

Rory is currently Artist in Residence at The Presentation Arts Centre where he inhabits a brand new studio space there to work in preparation for his upcoming exhibition. Rory will be in situ until December 18th 2021 and studio visits are welcome. You can also catch Rory on television in the latest season of Sky Portrait Artist of the Year.  

"An interesting local gallery bringing an eclectic range of emerging and established artists to their annual open exhibition."

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