MAEVE D'ARCY: Ogham

OGHAM MAEVE

D’ARCY

Onthecover: "ThighHigh"

Ogham

MaeveD’Arcy

September14throughOctober21,2023

KathrynMarkelFineArtsispleasedtopresent“Ogham,”anewbody ofworkbyMaeveD’Arcythatexploresmarkmakingaslanguage. Oghamisanancientalphabetthatwasprimarilyusedtowriteearly Celtic languages. It has an association with foliage, as many characters were modeled after specific trees. Inspired by Ogham, Maeve D’Arcy practice explores mark making as language. In a contemplative process, her random thoughts are turned into dashes, x’s,dotsandeveryothersortofrepetitivemark.Theyalsomimicthe dashes in Ogham, which are typically horizontal or diagonal lines that intersect. While Ogham letters mimicked trees, D’Arcy’s paintings echo the random concepts, feelings, and items that are significanttoheronanygivenday.

Living in Jackson Heights, NY, observation rules D’Arcy’s life. Known as one of the most diverse zip codes in the United States, thereisaplethoraofvisualinformationthatsheisconstantlytaking in.Inapeekintohermind,shedescribestheobservations:“..Ogham, stitches,seacaves,moldybread,skee-ball,mulch,seaweed,stainedtshirts,horseshoecrabs,tokens,rust,alphabets,loveletters,sediment, antlers, encounters, knots, the price of a stamp, rosaries, oceanography, dirty martinis, aprons, hurricane names, revolving doors.”

D'Arcy’s train of thought is impulsive and random, the marks are intense and meditative and the shapes and colors they give form to are arbitrary and unexpected. The result is playful and intuitive, as D’Arcy’simageryseemstogrowinevitablyoutoftheenergyofher process,toexpressthepassageoftimeandtheindividualityofone’s ownthoughts.

“FreezerBurn,”2023 acryliconcanvas

24x20inches

“TheYoungest,”2023 oilonpanel

10x8inches

“ThighHigh,”2023 oiloncanvas

36x30inches

48x48inches

“StoriesThatScaredEvenMe,”2023

oiloncanvas

“WhiskyFungus,”2023 oiloncanvas

24x20inches

“Somethingsuggestiveofatendril,”2023 oilonpanel 10x10inches

“TenHailMarys,”2023 oiloncanvas

36x24inches

“TheonewhereLucyhidesapuppy inthepiano,”2023 oiloncanvas

36x30inches

“TheCementMixer,”2023 oilonpanel 10x10inches

“aseriesofwordssaidasamagicspell orcharm,”2023 oilonpanel 10x8inches

529W.20thStreetNYCNY10011 www.markelfinearts.com

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MAEVE D'ARCY: Ogham

Published on Sep 14, 2023

Kathryn Markel Fine Arts

Kathryn Markel Fine Arts is pleased to present “Ogham,” a new body of work by Maeve D’Arcy that explores mark making as language. Ogham is an ancient alphabet that was primarily used to write early Celtic languages. It has an association with foliage, as many characters were modeled after specific trees. Inspired by Ogham, Maeve D’Arcy practice explores mark making as language. In a contemplative process, her random thoughts are turned into dashes, x’s, dots and every other sort of repetitive mark. They also mimic the dashes in Ogham, which are typically horizontal or diagonal lines that intersect. While Ogham letters mimicked trees, D’Arcy’s paintings echo the random concepts, feelings, and items that are significant to her on any given day.