New Art Exhibition Explores Beauty and Fragility of the Natural World

‘Fragile Island’ will be officially opened by art consultant and curator Catherine Hammond at 6pm on Friday, October 29th. The LHQ gallery is located at the County Library Headquarters building next to Cork County Hall. Its accessible exhibition facility is available to emerging and established artists, community arts groups and others.

The exhibition is inspired by Catherine Weld’s daily walks in the rural landscape in West Cork and making drawings of the things she encounters. Her exhibition explores how Covid-19, together with the global effects of climate change, puts us in a place of unprecedented uncertainty.

Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr. Gillian Coughlan congratulated artist Catherine Weld on her forthcoming exhibition: "County Cork has long been a home and source of inspiration for visual artists. Catherine's paintings and drawings seem abstract at first but speak of the uniqueness of our landscape which will be familiar to many. The Library HQ Gallery is a wonderful space and is part of Cork County Council’s commitment to supporting artists. I hope that visitors to the Library will take the time to stop and enjoy Catherine’s work over the coming weeks. We are also delighted to have Catherine host a workshop in the gallery; it will be the gallery's first in-person workshop in a very long time."

Catherine Weld says that anything that sparks her interest can become a subject, “I find that inspiration comes from the most delicate flower to extraordinary formations of rock, to the painful stumps of felled trees. For me, inspiration comes also from sounds, touch and the sensations of weather, light or atmosphere and I record them using pencils, charcoal and even lumps of earth and the sap of plants. My drawings and paintings explore the complex and beautiful but fragile and vulnerable natural world, as it comes under increasing threat from changes in climate and the ravages inflicted on it by humanity.”

Catherine Weld will facilitate a free two-hour drawing and collage workshop in the gallery on Wednesday, November 17th from 10.30am to 12.30pm. No previous experience is necessary; however, the workshop is limited to six participants in accordance with Covid-19 public health guidelines. The workshop will explore tonal values and composition, there will also be an exercise combining collage and drawing. Participants are encouraged to bring along materials, such as photographs, that are meaningful to them for the exercise. Booking is essential and can be made by emailing arts@corkcoco.ie

To view more of Catherine's works visit www.catherineweld.com