Bio

Paraic works in sculpture, installation and video.

Themes in his Work

Paraic makes sculptural installations using commonplace industrially manufactured materials. Plasterboard, stud walls, suspended ceilings and mirror are barely transformed. They are coerced into an anxious and tentative relationship with the surface image of the room they occupy. The structures reveal the fault lines of the social system we inhabit.

His current work has taken inspiration from a number of texts. ‘The Poetics of Space’ by Gaston Bachelard (1958), offers a poetic and philosophical investigation of the psychology of domestic spaces. ‘The Rise of the Network Society’ (1996) by Manuel Castells. In this work he describes the effects of informationism on social and spatial organisation. “The space of flows”, explained Castells, “dissolves time by disordering the sequence of events and making them simultaneous, thus installing society in eternal ephemerality”.

He is interested in engaging the viewer psychologically. Through the work the viewer is presented with a vision of architecture’s inadequacy to physically express the social organisation of the information age.

Collaborative Arts Practice

He is experienced working in the area of collaborative arts practice. From 1999-2002 he worked with a development organisation working at developing social, economic and cultural links between border communities.

In 2008, Paraic started working on a project called Life’s No Picnic on the Streets with Depaul Ireland, a homeless charity working with marginalised homeless in Ireland. In the first year Paraic was one of three visual artists selected to create a body of work made in collaboration with service users for exhibition at Electric Picnic arts and music festival. Paraic was then asked to be curator of the project. By 2012 over 20 artists, and over 60 service users participated.

Teaching & Research

Paraic lectures in Cultural Policy and Arts Management at the Institute of Art Design and Technology in Dun Laoghaire (IADT). His cultural policy research interests range from Youth participation in Culture to Cultural Rights and Cultural Democracy.

Education

2018     MFA Fine Art Sculpture National College of Art and Design.

2003     MA Cultural Policy University College Dublin.

1998     BA honours degree in Fine Art (Painting) University of Ulster.

Selected Group Exhibitions

2018    MFA Graduae Show, NCAD, Dublin

2017    Half Baked, Eblana House, Dublin

2017    Detached, Solstice, Navan

2011    Life with Edits, Peer Reviewed Screening, the Joinery, Dublin

2009    Fingal County Collection Exhibition, Farmleigh House, Dublin

2008    Life’s No Picnic on the Streets, Electric Picnic, Stradbally, Laois

2006    Draiocht Centre for the Arts, Blanchardstown, Dublin

2003    Monaghan County Museum

2001    Tyrone Guthrie Centre, Monaghan

2001    Monaghan County Museum

2000    Artstore, Southwilliam St, Dublin

1999    Markethouse, Monaghan

Solo Exhibitions

2019    Catalyst Arts Gallery, Belfast

2010     Screening of ‘Ignatius Road’ Short Film Xavior Hall, Dublin

2002     Draiocht Centre for the Arts, Blanchardstown, Dublin

2002     Monaghan County Museum, Monaghan

2000     Markethouse Gallery, Monaghan

1999     Basement Gallery, Dundalk

Awards

2010      Louth County Council Arts Grant

2007      Dublin City Council Arts Grant

2004      Patrick Kavanagh Centenary Commission Monaghan Museum

2003      Cavan Crystal Hotel – Binary Series commissioned by hotel

2001      Residency award – Draiocht Centre for the Arts, Blanchardstown, Dublin

1999      Portrait of Sir John Leslie – Commissioned by Castle Leslie Estate

Collections

Fingal County Council Collection, Dundalk Urban District Council, Monaghan County Council, Monaghan County Museum, Leslie Castle collection, Cavan Crystal Hotel collection, numerous private collections