Katie McCloskey

Katie McCloskey’s paintings explore togetherness within Drogheda’s social life through pub conversations, gigs, and collective acts of making. Using camcorder and iPhone footage, she transforms fleeting interactions into oil paintings that preserve intimacy and connection. Posters and zines from the Underground Zine Archive, established by Rita Hynes, functioning as an archive and source material that give context to McCloskey’s work. Her practice reflects and argues for protecting communal spaces where art and collective life can evolve.

Influenced by punk and DIY culture, these paintings both document community — preserving its emotional texture — and actively participate within it. As creative spaces become increasingly rare across Ireland, the work also takes on heightened urgency. Ireland is a wealthy country with an abundance of creative talent, yet the venues that nurture and sustain that talent continue to disappear, with the loss of The Complex marking a particularly significant blow for emerging artists.

In a climate where AI and automation are beginning to replace creative labour, McCloskey’s practice becomes both a reflection on, and an argument for, protecting and sustaining the physical, communal spaces where art, culture, and collective life can continue to evolve.