Climate-conscious artist Gavin Doyle talks sustainability in art and giving old things new life
Gavin Doyle is a self-taught artist from Bray who uses old canvases, boards and frames to create atmospheric pieces shaped by nature, antiques and spontaneous inspiration. Each brushstroke he explores memory, mood and texture.
Was a career as an artist something you always aspired to?
As a young man, I did aspire to be an artist but alas listened to too many voices who said it’s impossible to make a living as a full time artist so I stopped pursuing that and did like many of my age in the early ‘90s and went to seek fame and fortune in London.
Fortunately, I took up sketching again during ‘lockdown’ and quickly rekindled my love for art. In truth it never waned, only taking a backseat but when I took a weekend course on how to use oil paints it firmly put me back in the drivers’ seat. The artist who ran that course was the daughter of a famous artist whose Saturday morning art classes I used to attend as a child. Talk about synchronicity.
What is your process when creating a new work? How do certain themes and experiences feed into or present themselves in your art?
My style of painting lends itself nicely to the old frames I salvage. Typically, I decide on the frame first and then work on the composition I feel will best suit it, so the reverse process to other artists. I love a blank canvas as that’s where imagination exists for me. I do find my style evolving with each painting with constant experimentation; whether a large-scale piece or small, intricate detail. Vermeer was a master at capturing the light in his compositions and I always work to echo this in my own paintings. Experimenting with colour is essential and I often spend hours just mixing colours to see how they work with one another, very often challenging as a colour-blind artist.
What are some of your favourite subjects, or specific pieces that you’ve created?
Whilst I mostly paint still-life and interior still-life with occasional portraits or landscapes, I’m often drawn back to simple shapes and shading. I never tire of painting vases, pots, bottles and jugs in all their splendid forms. Many have been collected and curated over the years by my wife and I. Sometimes, reducing a painting to everyday objects and not overcrowding a painting and choosing the right palette can be pure magic.
My favourite piece I’ve painted is A Storm Outside , one which I’ll never sell and was inspired initially by an old watering can I took a photograph of, the ones you typically see in a French brocante. Then I came across an old photograph of a dilapidated cottage window to place it in. I wanted to convey the familiar, cosy feeling of being inside, while a storm rages outside. Something we’re all too familiar with living in Ireland.
Tell us about how sustainability comes into play in your art.
My dad used to salvage old furniture from skips, often hurling us kids in to reach some items. You could say that Health & Safety was vastly different when we were growing up. We would watch him diligently repair furniture and then donate to those in need and so you could say that ‘one man’s junk is another man’s treasure’ is something we learned firsthand.
Fast forward many years later and this same ethos of re-use and re-invent has become my sustainability mantra and which I bring to my work, recycling old canvases, boards, repairing and reusing old frames which I source from salvage yards, charity shops, flea markets and people’s attics (with permission of course). I believe we all have a part to play in reducing and re-using materials in the interior design space, of which art is such an important element in the execution of an aesthetic. I love the idea my clients are helping to save the planet each time they buy a painting from me.
Who is someone you look up to in the realm of Irish art?
William Leech is a firm favourite and his work can be seen in the National Gallery. His painting A Convent Garden is a sublime mastery of light and colour and I often go back to this painting, especially when painting foliage. I’ve painted his work many times, never to sell but to learn from and push my own ever-evolving style. Some favourite contemporary artists include Gerard Byrne, Petra Berntsson, Julie Potter and Roisin O’ Farrell.
What is one thing you wish everyone knew about working as an artist?
Most artists I know and speak with only ever want to paint day and night in their studio. What they find challenging is putting themselves out there to market and sell their work, needless to say a financial necessity essential to sustain the artist’s life.
What would you say to a budding artist unsure of their next steps?
Find your artistic style and paint what inspires you! Master patience, don’t be complacent and explore ways to get your work noticed.
Gavin Doyle’s life in culture
The last thing I saw and loved… Was performed by David Byrne in the 3Arena was one of the best musical spectacles I’ve experienced!
The book I keep coming back to… Long Walk to Freedom, Nelson Mandela.
I find inspiration in… Nature, museums, architecture and my firm favourite, salvage yards.
My favourite film is… Once Upon a Time in America, directed by Sergio Leone.
My career highlight is… The first time I was brave enough to exhibit at Artsource in RDS, Dublin. A real pinch-me moment.
The song I listen to to get in the zone is… ‘What Went Down’ by Foals. Equally, anything with a disco beat works a treat.
I never leave the house without… My phone, obvious I know but I tend to use the camera more than the phone as you never know when you see something you need to photograph as inspiration for the next painting
The piece of work I still think about is… Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar.
The best advice I’ve ever gotten… Be curious and don’t take no for an answer.
The art that means the most to me is… A visit to MOMA in New York many years ago, it got quite emotional… Wow!
The most challenging thing about being an artist is… The difficulty in getting noticed in such a digitally busy world.
If I wasn’t an artist, I would be… An architect.
The magic of art to me is… That it transcends words and resonates so deeply at an emotional level that it can sometimes take your breath away and move you to tears, which is pure jedi-magic.
Gavin Doyle will exhibit his work at The Doorway Gallery from May 21 — June 4. thedoorwaygallery.com
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