‘Red Stars and Variations‘ is an exhibition of new work by Elizabeth Magill at the Kerlin Gallery. Having graduated from the Belfast College of Art and the Slade School of Art (University College London), Magill has gone on to exhibit her award-winning work across Europe, the US, the UK and Asia.
The exhibition includes 10 new works which are located in the main showroom of the Kerlin Gallery. Magill’s practice has regularly included mixed media, from photography to screenprinting. In the majority of these new works, Magill combines the practice of oil painting with that of screenprinting, which involves transferring an imagine on to the canvas.
Magill’s signature style of distressed and atmospheric landscapes is indicative of the ‘romanic sublime’, which is described as the adjoin of the subjective-internal (emotion) and the objective-external (natural world). While experiencing the natural world, the artist’s rationality can be overwhelmed by emotion, brining an almost surreal atmosphere to her work. As with the sublime, these awe-inspiring and astonishing landscapes are depicted with a haunting undertone.
Magill’s landscape paintings are devoid of any people which reinforces the notion of the romantic sublime, which often deals with elements of isolation and solitude. Magill portrays these themes with visual queues of hope and optimism, represented by a series of stars and ambient glow on the horizon. Given the past year and the varying degrees of self-isolation, the viewer may now have a deeper emotional response to Magill’s work.
As we are still dealing with social restrictions, the gallery only permits a certain amount of people to enter at a single time. However, this will benefit the viewer. Exploring these works by oneself enables the viewer to be placed in the centre of the artist’s created world which makes for a more profound viewing experience.
‘Red Stars and Variations’ is running from 29 May – 10 July 2021 at the Kerlin Gallery.
To see more of Elizabeth’s work visit her website and Instagram.