A few Months ago I saw three amazing little life paintings drying behind the desk at the RHA in Dublin but the girl working there didn’t know who the artist was. Today I walked past a music shop and there was a huge poster for the new Mick Flannery album in the window and I thought to myself that has to be the same artist, turns out it was and those life studies are well sold at this stage! The artist is Irish man Al Freney who resides in Moxie studios in Dublin and is represented by Cherrylane Fine Arts.
For me his work is a little like jazz, it’s all about the brush strokes he doesn’t make. I see links in his approach to paintings by Colin Davidson, where areas are left bare and paint is let drip naturally, making lines and giving an effortless feel to the work. Al Freney’s work entitled ‘At This Time of Night’ was one of 55 portraits exhibited at the 32nd annual BP Portrait Award in London last year. Al is currently working on a solo show for 2012.
surface & surface 