Dearbhla Lawlor

My work explores my relationship with the National Gallery of Ireland. From a young age, the National Gallery informed my view of what a gallery is and now, as an artist with a practice of my own, I visit the gallery to try and understand how it has shaped my worldview, and how I fit into its picture.

Through continuous site visits, I have built a relationship with the space, examining it in close detail. I subvert expectations of appropriate gallery behaviour both in action and in the direction of my attention. Utilising printmaking techniques, video, and the appropriation of the language of gallery ephemera, I aim to understand how what we deem important impacts the way we navigate and interact with the gallery, making the invisible paths we travel visible. By shining a light on the overlooked aspects of our journeys, I examine the marks we leave behind and the mark the gallery leaves on us.