Park any misconceptions you might have about stark white spaces. One gallery owner opens his front door and shows how he really lives. There are plenty of white walls, but with art on every surface, as far as the eye can see, little wall space remains.
It’s gallery weekend in Dublin, and that means anyone who wants to adorn their homes should seek inspiration at the specially curated shows, events, talks and trails, almost all of which are free to attend.
All participating galleries open late tonight, Friday, November 6th, and through Saturday, November 7th and Sunday, November 8th.
As chair of the Contemporary Art Gallery Association (CAGA), gallerist and fine art consultant Dr. John Daly of Hillsboro Fine Art is the event’s ringmaster.
He lives with art in a way most of us will never do, with more works than any gallery would choose to show.
Minimalists should look away now, for his is a crowded house.
He surrounds himself with all that he loves, a broad church of paintings, sculpture, books, and photos, all within a real home setting. There are no white gloves used here.
He is the fourth generation of his family to live here, in a property built by his great-great-grandfather who also constructed many homes on the surrounding streets.
The house is a riot of colour and a range of styles, with works occupying much of the wall and floor space and many, many surfaces.
As you open the front door, art greets you in every form.
In the hall there are works on the wall, sculptures on the floor, including two works by John Kindness, a portrait painted onto the bonnet of a Mini and a sculpture of the dog that swallowed the cat, a black dog with a golden tail sticking out of his mouth.
In the drawing room there’s a pair of what seem to be steel girders on a wall. His mother thought they were in situ to hold up the house.
These beams are bookended by a pair of men’s formal shoes and are the work of Jannis Kounellis, an Italian Greek artist, associated with the Arte Povera movement of the 1960s and 1970s.
He eschewed more typical fine-art mediums in favour of everyday, industrial, and organic substances.
On an adjacent wall are drawings by Patrick Graham, whose work has been awarded the Francis Bacon lifetime achievement award, one of two new prizes for Irish visual arts, supported by Paddy McKillan’s Château La Coste, to recognise artists at different stages of their careers. Graham has been given €25,000.
A work by Scottish painter Alan Davie and sculptures by Giuseppe Spagnolo and Tim Scott. Pic: Fran Veale
On the far side of the hall, his office is lined with bookcases and artworks stacked several deep. A roll-top desk is where the multi-lettered academic works are.
The gallery regularly produces publications to accompany its exhibitions.
He held his first exhibition in 1995 in the house.
“All the artists I knew were with other galleries. I went to the very top in England and got Terry Frost.”
The abstract British artist was known for his use of the Cornish light. “We became great friends and would meet in the Chelsea Arts Club.”
Despite still exhibiting at home, Frost told all his contemporaries that John had the best gallery in Ireland.
He became friends with many of the artists in his home.
In the interconnecting rooms at the back, mid-century pieces by Le Corbusier, Mies van der Rohe and Eileen Gray are surrounded by several large works, including Patrick Graham surrounded by bronzes by Anthony Caro and faces another large work, this time by Scottish painter Alan Davie.
Jules Olitski, Pic: Fran Veale
As a collector, it is no surprise to see he has not one but two range cookers. He uses neither, recounting a man who was called to service one of them.
It was in such immaculate condition that it prompted him to ask, sarcastically,
“What do you do with it? Dust it?". He also has a collection of Le Creuset cookware artfully displayed but, he assures, used daily.
“I like old-fashioned things. I buy one good thing and look after it,” he says, pulling out a Mont Blanc pen that he’s had since graduation from his jacket pocket.
He’s not sure when or why the art bug bit him.
“We had no art in the house, but an old grand aunt painted and did a little bit of embroidery. She was a good painter.”
He started collecting as a teenager. He really wanted a motorbike and worked in a bar nearby, all through school, saving €2,000, with the hope of realising that dream.
“All my friends were buying motorbikes. My parents wouldn’t let me.” He rebelled by buying a work by British artist Victor Passmore at Christie's.
In the bedroom is another Karl Weschke; a dark piece hangs behind the brass bed, while his favourite work, by American abstract expressionist painter and printmaker Robert Motherwell, can be seen from the bed. It has two titles: Self Portrait as a Dog and Straw Horse.
Drawn on canvas with charcoal, oil and acrylic, he doesn’t know why he likes it. “It’s a bit childlike,” he says.
Why art? “It softens the environment and can be a conversation starter," he explains.
"Every work is another adventure. It is the greatest privilege. He is let into their precious, private space. What a great window onto the world.”
Top of the weekend must-sees is Silt & Sorcery featuring the work of Cecilia Bullo and Kevin Mooney at his gallery, located at 49 Parnell Square West, in the heart of the city’s new cultural quarter, with The Irish Writer’s Centre and Poetry Ireland in situ and works ongoing at the library and the Hugh Lane Gallery.
"I have more things hanging than most people would, he admits. "At home it’s different, but it is also my business."
The weekend sees curators from across Europe join forces with artists for a series of talks, events and late-night openings to make Friday night and the weekend just a little more thought-provoking.
Dublin Gallery Weekend runs until Sunday, November 8th. Enjoy a series of mainly free series exhibitions, events, talks and happenings curated by the Contemporary Art Gallery Association (CAGA) and SoSimpatico. See Silt & Sorcery at Hillsboro Fine Art at 49 Parnell Square West.
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Another painting by Karl Weschke hangs behind the brass bed, while his favourite work, by American abstract expressionist artist Robert Motherwell, hangs on an adjacent wall.
Garden
A garden is part of your home. The sculpture in the garden includes Michael Warren, Anthony Caro, and Tim Scott.
