Ten Mins With…Gerard Byrne

Irish Post

01-07-2025

IRISH artist Gerard Byrne is heading Stateside.
The Dubliner will exhibit his work at the Hamptons Fine Art Fair in Southampton, New York from July 10 – 13.
This week he took time out to talk to the Irish Post about his plans...
Dublin artist Gerard Byrne What are you up to right now?
I'm knee-deep in paint and packing canvases, preparing for the Hamptons Fine Art Fair in New York this July.
It's a big moment - my first major US exhibition since the '90s.
Gerard Byrne Studio, Home of Modern Irish Impressionism, is proud to be the only gallery from Ireland exhibiting.
We will be showcasing an exclusive preview of my New York collection in a Solo Artist Booth, Pollock Pavilion, Main Avenue, Booth 418. Moreover, on Sunday, July 13, from 1 – 4pm, I will be performing a live painting demonstration—a unique opportunity for fair-goers to see a piece come to life in real time.
In the meantime, I'm working on a few new artworks that capture Georgian Dublin's elusive summer light before I head off. The weather here keeps you humble, and quick— long evenings are a gift to any plein-air painter. Summer is here, what do you have planned for the season?
Aside from sweating through linen in New York, the highlight is definitely the Hamptons Fine Art Fair, where I'lll be exhibiting sixteen works - some from my two-month painting trip to NYC last autumn and a few new large-scale figurative pieces completed in my Dublin studio.
I also plan to do some plein-air painting while I'm in the Hamptons, soaking up that East Coast light.
Afterwards, I'm hoping for a well-earned break.
Gerard Byrne's Rooftop Reverie is among the artworks which will be on display at this month's Hamptons Fine Art fair What are your goals for 2025?
To keep going. I've been at this for over 35 years and there's still so much more to paint (I still haven't painted my masterpiece yet).
I want to remind people that looking – really looking – is still a radical act.
We're drowning in images, but there is a difference between scrolling and seeing.
My goal is to create work that slows people down, even for a moment. That's a kind of resistance, in a world that wants us to move faster and feel less. Who are your heroes?
I've always admired people who live by instinct. From an early age, I was drawn to the Masters—Monet, Matisse, Van Gogh. When I lived in London, David Hockney's '60 Years of Work' retrospective at Tate Britain really inspired me.
His joyful take on figurative works and simple landscapes sparked a real synergy with my own work. It's great to see Hockney, a living artist, being celebrated at such a large-scale in Britain.
Personally, I feel that painters aren't as recognised in Ireland, but I quietly aspire for a retrospective one day. Meanwhile, I keep working hard.
Beyond the art world, I admire anyone brave enough to start over. I trained as an electrician and worked on lighthouses before picking up a brush. My real heroes are the ones who take risks and let life surprise them. What is your favourite piece of art?
It's hard to pick just one favourite piece, but I believe Joaquín Sorolla's Sewing the Sail truly earns him the title 'Master of Light'. The way he captures light and texture is incredible. It feels intimate and alive, like a moment suspended in time. My recent discovery of Sir John Lavery's Sunbathers (1936) from 'Lavery. On Location' at the National Gallery of Ireland, also impressed me. Which artist influenced you most?
Monet influenced the way I see colour and movement.
The same with Hopper's treatment of light, and in the last decade, David Hockney has had a huge influence on my work—his ability to capture everyday scenes with such vibrancy and joy really resonates with me.
He knows what he likes and continues to reinvent it. But if I'm honest, the world itself has been my greatest teacher. I didn't study art in college, I'm a self-taught artist.
My art has always been influenced by my surroundings and experiences.
I learned by observing, again and again, until I found the small details—the way light hits the corner of a building, or the drifting gaze of a barman as he pours someone a drink.
The artist, hard at work What is your favourite place in Ireland?
Since the '90s, I've been going to Dingle—painting the town and its landscapes.
Out of the Blue, my favourite seafood restaurant, has become a kind of Gerard Byrne shrine, and I've built a strong following in that part of the country.
More recently, I've been rediscovering West Cork—finding myself drawn back to its soft light, tranquility and the kind of quiet moments that remind you why you fell in love with painting in the first place.
Of course, as a Dubliner, the city will always hold a special place in my heart. What is the best lesson life has taught you?
Life will always pull you toward what you're meant to do. It's never too late to become who you are.
I didn't come through art school. I came through the trades, through hard work and long roads, but something kept drawing me back to painting.
You've got to trust your instincts, because your path doesn't need to be straight to be true.
Also, protect your time, and your eyes. Don't take anything for granted. And never trust a brush that looks too clean.
Byrne's Jazz on the Rocks piece What do you believe in?
I'm a firm believer in destiny and serendipity.
Over the years, I've found myself in the right place at the right time, meeting the right people—often without planning it.
Some of the most important turns in my life and career began with a small decision or a passing moment that ended up meaning a lot.
You still have to put in the work, but sometimes life opens a door you didn't even know you were walking toward. Where do your Irish roots lie?
100% Dublin.
My great-grandmother came from Mayo, and so did my grandfather on my father's side - but everyone else is from Dublin.
I was born and raised here, in Finglas. Solid, working-class Dublin.
The Ireland I grew up in was tough, funny, and poetic - full of characters.
That humour and sharpness shaped how I see the world. You learn early how to observe, and certainly how to laugh. Where do you live now and what are the best and worst things about that place?
I live in Ranelagh, Dublin, with my wife Agata, and we run Gerard Byrne Studio together.
Best thing? It's a sought-after postcode—posh and affluent, with the iconic red-bricks.
I like how close it is to the city and the airport, and that I can spend the day painting, then step out for a pint in O'Brien's or a walk in St.Stephen's Green or Herbert Park.
Worst thing? You don't really get to know your neighbours here, unlike in Dalkey for example, where I lived before.
And I'm a people's person through and through. What is your ultimate guilty pleasure?
A cold pint of Guinness after a long day of painting under the hot summer sun.