Damien Flood

Shortlisted

Damien Flood graduated from the National College of Art & Design, Dublin with an MA in Fine Art in 2008. His paintings are grounded in early writings on philosophy, theology, alchemy and the natural sciences. He uses these as starting points from which to explore the mutability of 'reality' and language using a gestural, intuitive line.

His paintings occupy a space between landscape and figuration, acting as psychological portraits and maps to different worlds. He is interested in creating a duality in imagery, exploring how one picture can contain multiple meanings and readings. These new geographies give the viewer a meditative space to see and experience the world differently, questioning the everyday. The influences in his paintings are wide ranging – from aural histories of small coastal towns to research trips to deserts in Dubai and Sharjah. More recently, tangible objects like vases and plants have been incorporated into his work, combining an interest in Renaissance art with his love of abstract painting. These new objects allude to daily routine and ritual, off-setting and grounding surreal elements while adding new depth. With the addition of representational elements the works invite deeper readings and begin to blur the line between representational and abstract.

Damien Flood applied for a Golden Fleece Award in order to facilitate a step back from a heavily deadline-driven exhibition schedule and take time to deepen his research enquiries and explore new directions in his practice. These include experimentations with scale, traditional painting techniques and materials, as well as his work’s narrative potential.