Irish Artist Pauses for Harmony

During lockdown in Ireland, residents were not allowed to travel outside of their homes unless it was essential. This may seem problematic for plein air painters, but was an opportunity for Gerard Byrne, who found himself painting from the rooftop of his gallery (which is also his home).

“After restrictions eased, Gerard started to explore the local streets of his neighborhood, Ranelagh (Dublin, Ireland) and painted the charming Georgian homes of his neighbors,” said PR & Media Consultant Emylou Hurley. “The quiet streets brought a sense of tranquility and peacefulness. Gerard felt it was very important and being such an usual time, he had to capture the collective energy he could feel through his paintings.”

Because of the high response to this series, the Gerard Byrne Studio Gallery will be showcasing these 50 works in the exhibition “Pause for Harmony: Art in Lockdown.” The exhibition will run from September 25 through October 25, 2020.

To mark this year’s Culture Night (a national celebration of arts and culture) the studio gallery will launch an interactive 360 virtual tour of this exhibition on September 18. “This will be our second virtual and interactive tour of the Gerard Byrne Studio, having just recently launched “Botanical Fusion: Singapore to Dublin” online.

“The idea came when we were forced to close the gallery this March,” said Hurley. “We followed the footsteps of high end Hong Kong Art Show Basel, bringing a new and enterprising trend to Ireland’s art scene. Observed as innovative and creative, the virtual tour has been designed to showcase Gerard’s works from his exhibition ‘Botanical Fusion: Singapore to Dublin,’ which we had initially launched at the end of February. The tour invites viewers to take a look inside the gallery from the comfort of their own home. At one’s own pace, paintings can be viewed in detail while enjoying a selection of audio recordings from guests, such as Ireland’s Ambassador to Singapore Patrick Bourne and Honorary Consul-General of Singapore in Ireland Ron Bolger, as well as the artist himself.”