Creating Connections portrait exhibition of paintings by two emerging female artists

Creating Connections portrait exhibition – Emma Langford pictured above with her portrait by artist Aoife Carroll. Picture: Ava O’Donoghue/ilovelimerick.

Creating Connections portrait exhibition features a wide range of watercolour portraits and runs until Wednesday, April 27

The launch of the Creating Connections portrait exhibition by two emerging female artists, Aoife Carroll and Aksana Sasnouskaya, took place at the Belltable Arts Centre on O’Connell Street last Thursday, April 7. Guests from the arts community in Limerick and family and friends of the talented artists, gathered to celebrate the exhibition’s opening night.

Creating Connections portrait exhibition features a wide range of watercolour portraits from Aoife and Sasnouskaya, who are both learners in Art, Craft and Design at Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board’s College of FET, Kilmallock Road Campus, under the guidance of art tutor Jayne Foley. 

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There was great support from the Kilmallock Road Campus, with learners, tutors and managers amongst the guests celebrating with Aoife and Aksana. Members of the wider Further Education and Training multi-campus community also attended, including Director of Further Education and Training, Paul Patton.

Other familiar faces at the Creating Connections portrait exhibition included Limerick singer songwriter Emma Langford, newly crowned Limerick Person of the Year Padraig O’Callaghan and legendary comedian Pat Shortt who officially opened the exhibition.

Speaking about her work featured in the exhibition, Aoife Carroll said she took inspiration from familiar Limerick faces, showcasing a series of portraits of local people and acknowledging their contribution to life in Limerick. She also spoke about the creative flow in her work “I love how the watercolour paint moves along the wood grain. I have to let the paint do what it wants to. As the painting evolves, I use fine liners in addition to the watercolour to further develop and refine the portraits. I relish the challenge of the unpredictable, which is why I love water media. You are never entirely in control of how it flows or how it dries,” she explained.

Aksana Sasnouskaya, an Eastern European artist, based in Ireland, describes her work as a fusion of Eastern European heritage and Irish culture and symbolism.

Speaking about her portraits for ‘Creating Connections’, she described them as almost dreamlike in appearance and explained how they reflect on lives past and present. “In this series of portraits, I have depicted people whose presence or memories have had a great impact on me. The chance meetings with strangers the different paths and journeys our lives can take due to these connections. I like to use watercolour on paper and mixed media. This media helps capture my portraits’ atmosphere and emotion,” she said.

The beauty of both Aoife and Aksana’s talents can be appreciated at the Belltable Arts Centre as the ‘Creating Connections’ exhibition runs until Wednesday, April 27.

For more information on the Art, Craft and Design programme at College of FET, Killmallock Road Campus go HERE

For more stories on Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board go HERE