>John the Painter

John the Painter

Kate Strain
Trinity College Dublin
Department of History of Art and Architecture
2005
BA

Subject: Painting
Country: Ireland
Period: 20th and 21st Century

10,000 words

This dissertation explores the art of John the Painter who, as a long-term patient in a psychiatric hospital, differs greatly from the self-propelled mainstream artist. Chapter one analyses John's work with reference to particular paintings and discusses John's motivation to paint and the difficulties of interpretation his work presents. Chapter two outlines John's working environment and describes the role of Cork Community Art Link as a catalyst to his art. It reviews John's place in the Irish art world with reference to Outsider Art and community arts. Chapter three discusses the issues surrounding the exhibition of John's work at IMMA. Interviews with the curators of the exhibition at the Irish Museum of Modern Art are included as are an interview with his artistic mentor, a selection of newspaper reviews and a table of John's exhibitions to date.

Irish Georgian Society

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John the Painter