ABOUT
Rachel Doolin is an artist based in the South of Ireland. Her interdisciplinary practice merges art, experimentation and ecology of place, to create work that is informed by durational led research and driven by a desire to test the parameters of materiality, media and the criticality of issue-based practice.
Cross- disciplinary collaboration lies at the heart of Doolin's practice, as she frequently engages fellow artists, NGOs, as well as community and professional organisations in the realisation of her artistic visions. This collaborative ethos adds depth and dimension to her work, amplifying its impact and engaging diverse audiences at the intersection of current social and ecological concerns.
Her artistic ethos is driven by a profound curiosity of, and respect for our earthly resources. Employing a methodology she terms 'simple complexity,’ Doolin integrates diverse media to create thought-provoking eco-poetic installations that engage with the ‘language of materiality’ on aesthetic, intellectual, and visceral planes.
Her sculptural and installation-based works are intricate yet delicate compositions that explore eco-collectivist ideas surrounding notions of loss, hope, kinship, and activism.
Education: Doolin graduated from MTU Crawford College of Art & Design in 2015, where she completed a BA in Fine Art. Her degree show installation, "Promethean Illusions," earned her several graduate awards, including the National Sculpture Factory graduate residency and the Visual Arts Awards Taylor Art Prize. Since then, she has pursued a career in the arts with great energy and ambition, building a multifaceted body of work that encompasses exhibitions, public art installations, as well as socially and ecologically conscious projects.
Recent Awards include: Culture Moves Europe Mobility Grant | Goethe Institute (2024); ACI Visual Arts Project Planning Award Strand 1 (2024); Cork City Council Project Scheme Phase 1 R&D (2023/24; The CARO Climate Action Award (2023); The Halpin-Hellier Sculpture in Context Award (2023); Arts Council of Ireland Visual Arts Bursary (2023); Business to Arts: Best use of creativity in the workplace (2023); Cork City Council Arts Office Individual Artist Bursary Award (2023); Lifelong Learning Award (2022); Arts Council of Ireland Visual Arts Project Award (2022).
Research residencies and collaborations include:
Islandscape, UCC and True Harvest Seeds (Ongoing), Oscillithic, with artist Anne Marie Deacy (Ongoing). Sím Residency Program, Icelandic Association of Visual Artists (2024), Artists Laboratory, Solstice Arts Centre with The Netterville Institute,
Devenish Lands at Dowth (2022/23). Heirloom, Irish Seed Savers Association (2020-2022). The Giving Tree, BioMarin commission in partnership with Crann Trees for Ireland 2019- 2022. Little Bird Babble in partnership with Wallaroo Child and
Family Project at Ashbourne Direct Provision Centre with Birdwatch Ireland 2020-2021.
Recent exhibitions include: Open Space, Sím, Reykjavik (2024), Sculpture In Context, National Botanic Gardens (2023); Holdings, Solstice Arts Centre (2023); Heirloom, LHQ Gallery Cork County Council (2023); Heirloom, Lexicon Gallery, Dublin (2022/23); Parklife, Biodiversity in Contemporary Irish Art (2022). New Era, Artists Exploring Climate Change, Solstice Arts Centre, Meath (2020); CONNECTED, Kilkenny Sculpture Trail, The National Craft and Design Centre, Kilkenny (2020).
Click here for full CV.
Doolin’s work has been purchased and commissioned by both private and public collectors, and continues to be generously supported through various funding initiatives made available by local and national arts advocates and organisations:
