1. Barry Masterson. Loves football. More specifically, League of Ireland. I was asked to draw a portrait of someone years ago but I was rubbish at them so got Barry to do it. Barry stuck with the drawing over the years. His illustrations have gone on to adorn the walls of football fans worldwide and even made their way into the match day programmes at the Aviva. Technically not a Limerick man but he studied at the wonderful Limerick School of Art and Design and hung around long enough so we can claim him as our own. I'm sure a few Treaty United illustrations must be in the pipeline over the coming months.
Check out his work here > https://barrymasterson.com/
2. Des Mc Mahon. A printmaking warrior. Des taught me a lot about printmaking. Mainly how to be extremely productive while sleep deprived and slightly intoxicated. His art can be dark yet playful, a delightful combination of curious scribbles that dance about the page like Costello's regulars at two in the morning. Institutional critiques and social commentaries run through his work like a drunk down Parnell street. A skillful artist, he knows how to make prints like no one else, and no one else knows how to make prints like Des. He has inspired a generation of Limerick printmakers and for that I would like to thank him. Every household should have a Des Mac. His art, not an actual Des, that would be a bit much.
Check out his work here > https://desmacmahon.ie/
3. Liam Madden. I met this gentleman in Limerick Printmakers one night. We were both in the workshop making some art, I asked him was the volume OK on the sound system and he told me to turn it up. He has a great taste in music and an even better taste in art. A graphic style artist, his work adorns the walls of many a home. A keen eye and a steady knowledge of print has resulted in artwork that is in demand. Proper prints by a proper artist.
Check out his work here > https://liammaddencreative.myportfolio.com/
4. Ewan Mc Garry. When I moved to London I used to drink in an Irish pub in West Croydon. I knew no one or so I thought. One evening a rapturous Irish hello bellowed out from the corner of the pub and Ewan appeared. A cracking teacher and a passionate artist. His work combines painting, video, drawing and whatever else he turns his fancy to. Technically not a Limerick native but he learnt his craft in Limerick School of Art and Design so he's as good as our own.
5. Rowena Quill. I studied alongside Rowena at college, screenprinting was her weapon of choice back then and still is today. A Limerick native who has been slinging prints out of Limerick Printmakers for many a year. A delightful knowledge of colour makes her prints instantly recognisable. A perfectionist in the workshop her attention to detail is unrivaled.
Check out her work here > https://www.peopleofprint.com/screen-print-2/rowena-quill/
6. The 061. Very average artist. A nomadic printmaker exercising his right to print in the UK and Ireland. He likes printing and refers to Limerick as the 061. So much so that it's beginning to catch on. His work varies from poorly translated Irish text to graphic images devised to generate civic pride. Currently exiled in London, when he's not teaching art to kids in Croydon he keeps himself busy with a pencil, drawing inspiration from the town that raised him. Long live the 061.
