Gráinne Walsh, founder of Grey Area studio: ‘I bought a derelict factory building with no real plan’
Gráinne Walsh spent years working as a designer and fashion consultant in New York and Canada before returning to Dublin. A former lecturer, she founded Grey Area studio in 2018.
Grey Area studio.
Gráinne hand-painted a canvas backdrop and plinths for a Tipperary handbag shoot with photographer Alex Hutchinson.
WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB?
I worked with a graphic designer creating colour separations by hand for screen prints on t-shirts in a Capel Street basement. It was freezing in the winter and boiling in summer but I learned so much, the chaos and the madness of it, I feel like it set me up for life.
WHEN DID YOU BEGIN YOUR CAREER?
I began my career as a fashion designer in New York one year before I finished my degree in NCAD. I arrived with a portfolio, circled some ads in WWD, went to interviews and somehow landed a well-paid job in Manhattan. I worked on the 22nd floor and my office had an amazing view of the city.
WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO SET UP GREY AREA?
I often booked studios around Dublin for shoots and they were draughty and bleak, often up a flight of stairs (or four), with a few dirty mugs, no hot water and definitely no loo roll. I’d been a fashion designer for 25 years and while I wanted to stay in the industry, I also wanted a new challenge. So I bought a derelict factory building with no real plan. Grey Area could have been a doggy daycare or a coffee shop, there were so many ideas spinning around.
An Arnotts fashion shoot with photographer Kyle Sven.
“This L’Oréal hair colour shoot was a dream-like set where the models looked like dolls in their colourful wigs.”
WHAT DOES A TYPICAL DAY LOOK LIKE?
What I love most about my job is that there is no such thing. I’m not an early bird so I do all of the prep and organising the night before and push snooze until the last possible minute.
WHAT PARTS OF YOUR ROLE DO YOU FIND MOST FULFILLING?
There’s nothing as exciting as seeing a vision in your head become a reality. When everybody comes together on a shoot day and suddenly everything falls into place. A great description, a moodboard or a design brief is all it takes to get the creative juices flowing and I’m consumed with getting the set or backdrop started. That creative reward is what it’s all about for me. I don’t think I will ever lose that.
WHAT ARE SOME MEMORABLE CAREER HIGHLIGHTS?
In 2018, I was looking for new challenges. I decided I’d try my hand at garden design. On a whim, I entered RTÉ’s Super Garden and somehow managed to win, even though I was up against four professional horticulturalists. My reward – which nearly killed me – was to recreate the garden as a Show Garden at Bloom. I won a Silver Gilt medal. I was in my early fifties and I felt such a sense of pride that I could compete and succeed in a new arena.
WHAT ARE YOUR PASSIONS OUTSIDE OF WORK?
My dogs are a huge source of inspiration and I always have a few dogs, mostly ones I found dumped in the Phoenix Park. They come to the studio with me most days and even get the occasional modelling gig. My partner Mick and myself have just gone sale agreed on a derelict house on Achill Island and so renovating has already taken over my mind.
This article originally appeared in the Spring 2026 issue of IMAGE. Have you thought about becoming an IMAGE subscriber? Our Print & Digital Magazine subscribers receive all four issues of IMAGE Magazine and two issues of IMAGE Interiors directly to their door along with digital access to all digital magazines and our full digital archive plus a luxury gift from La Bougie worth €75. Visit here to find out more about our IMAGE subscription packages.
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