Seán O’Rourke, Middle Panel of the Crucifixion Triptych 2016
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Artwork
Inspired by Francis Bacon’s 1965 Crucifixion, Seán O’Rourke’s Crucifixion triptych was a way of commemorating the demolition of inner-city flat complexes, and as a means of documenting the constant changes throughout the city. Shifting through the debris of a culture, using found objects to make art, the triptych was painted on metal once use to board up the windows of the Dolphin House flat complex. The rusted metal serves as a relic of this working-class area, and transforming it into art brings attention to what once existed. Originally drawn to these derelict flat blocks by the distressed elements that they possess, Seán removed the metal plates from their original context and placed them in the context of a gallery space. This allowed them to be primarily viewed as an aesthetic, observing the influential merit of the architecture’s rough exterior.
Artist
Seán is a visual artist specializing in painting. He graduated from NCAD in 2016, and in the same year was awarded the NUI Art and Design Prize for his Crucifixion triptych. Since graduating, he has been working as a professional artist, exhibiting work in galleries such as the Royal Hibernian Academy and the Ulster Museum. In 2018, he had his first solo exhibition in The Lab Gallery entitled Cultural Osmosis, which looked at how our external environment can form our personality. Seán received the Clancy Quay Studios Residency Award three years in a row, in 2017, 2018 and 2019. His work looks at how the individual relates to society, and how our culture forms our identity, exploring one's spirit within a capitalist society.
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