Ciara Shannon
she/her
Support: to endure without opposition or resistance
To be a woman is to be in a state of fight or flight. The works I have created depict a woman with no choice but to suffer and endure through the narrative of religion. I aim to shift the weight of the stories of Catholicism- traditionally told from childhood about a man taking on great suffering for the beliefs of his people- to a narrative where a woman suffers for her beliefs. She is isolated in these paintings, with no other person to share her suffering.
I have always had a great interest in storytelling and giving words a physical image; this is what I wish to depict in my watercolour pieces. They are a depiction of a lack of belief. Gold is typically seen as rich and regal, but I want it to be seen as a cage that is cracking.
Beating and Bleeding, watercolour and clay on canvas, 80cm x 80cm
Penance, watercolour and puff paint on canvas, 80cm x 80cm
The Knowledge She Shared, watercolour and mixed media on canvas, 80cm x 80cm
Pleading, watercolour & mixed media on canvas, 80cm x 80cm
Confined, watercolour & clay on canvas, 80cm x 80cm
Escape I, gold leaf on canvas, 60cm x 60cm
Escape II, gold leaf on canvas, 60cm x 60cm
Research