Second Thoughts- Margaret McLoughlin

Second Thoughts- an exhibition of photographs, and prints by Margaret McLoughlin inspired by #100daysofwalking.

Margaret McLoughlin is an established Irish printmaker who has exhibited in the Royal Academy Summer show, the Royal Hibernian academy as well as numerous group shows and she has had several solo shows in the Original Print gallery, Temple Bar.

These prints and photographs sprang from the artists second look at her locality. They work together to encapsulate the artist’s new perception. They focus on previously unobserved beautiful details within her local coastal and urban environment contrasting with the chaos and upset of the wider world in the last two years.

Landscape has always been the driving inspiration McLoughlin’s work. Over the years she has explored the rich Irish landscapes of Wicklow and Leitrim through painting and printmaking.

In January 2020 she began the 100 days of walking challenge A crucial part of the exercise was taking a photograph on the daily walk of something that sparked interest and posting it on Instagram using the hashtag #100daysofwalking , on McLoughlins instagram @mmcloughlinartist.

As March brought pandemic restrictions McLoughlin was no longer able to draw inspiration from her usual stamping ground, she found myself walking daily in her immediate urban and coastal environment. This was a rewarding exercise, in the midst of the pandemic – both contemplative and refreshing, seeing the familiar places of my walks in different light and all weathers.

She noticed colours, details, that were suddenly glorious in their ordinariness. These split seconds of observance became a starting point in the creation of work that captures the atmosphere and essence of a landscape rather than a representation of a specific place.

With the Black Church print studio closed due to the pandemic she began drawings inspired by these walks. As society slowly started reopening she began using the photographs and drawings as inspiration, using etching and carborundum in the reopened Black Church Print Studio.