Michele Hetherington is a visual artist and printmaker living in Dublin. Her latest project saw her—alongside over 50 other members of Graphic Studio Dublin—create original fine art prints on the theme of ‘Echoes of Home’ for a fundraiser exhibition on behalf of Simon Communities of Ireland.
The last thing I saw and loved… Women Impressionists at the National Gallery.
The book I keep coming back to… Losing Eden by Lucy Jones.
I find inspiration in… the everyday landscape, reading and poetry.
My favourite film is… The Theory of Everything.
My career highlight is… discovering the world of printmaking. I am fortunate enough to arrive at the studio each day to work alongside a community of so many inspiring artists.
The song I listen to to get in the zone is… “Time” by Hans Zimmer from the Inception soundtrack.
The last book I recommended is… Writing Landscape by Linda Cracknell.
I never leave the house without… knowing why I’m leaving.
The piece of work I still think about is… a performance piece by Nigel Rolfe called Breath in the Green on Red Gallery, Dublin (2017).
The best advice I’ve ever gotten… “Paint the verb, not the noun”.
The book that means the most to me is… Quiet by Susan Cain.
My favourite thing about this art fundraiser for Simon Communities of Ireland in the RHA is… the work that the Simon Communities of Ireland do is extremely vital – being a part of this project is very important to me. This is the fourth year that Graphic Studio Dublin, HLB Ireland and Simon Communities have collaborated on this project. It unites a community of artists and encourages important conversations. To create work on the theme of home, artists explore and reflect on a sense of place, belonging and the meaning of safety. My favourite thing about this project is the community it has built and it continues to grow.
The most challenging thing about being an artist is… protecting and encouraging our own sensitivity and sensibility.
If I wasn’t an artist, I would be… an environmental psychologist. I am deeply fascinated by our minds and the impact our environment has on us.
The magic of art to me is… its transcendence. It’s an open invitation to see the world and an attempt to understand it.
Echoes of Home prints will be available to purchase at the RHA exhibition and online at simon.ie. Prices are €160 for unframed prints and €225 for framed prints.
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