Play of Light at Kenny Gallery

The Artist at 80: Play of Light is the title of an exhibition of new paintings by Anna Marie Leavy, which is currently showing at the city’s Kenny Gallery.
Donegal-born Anna Marie, who has spent most of her life in Mullingar, has always loved nature and this is reflected in her work, especially her watercolour studies of wild flowers for which she is well-known.
These are close-up paintings of many different types of plants, mostly in full bloom and mostly in their natural surroundings. She captures the fleeting effects of light on clusters of buds and full flowers, and recreates whorls of colourful petals. She uses transparent watercolour in this process, often with dramatic results.
Anna Marie also paints landscapes, especially bogscapes, and uses mostly acrylic to create those. She likes the colours to ooze like syrup over the surface before moving and dragging them around.
She has had many one-woman shows in various parts of Ireland and in Japan. Painting this exhibition was her way of celebrating her eightieth birthday.
Play of Light will continue until Thursday, June 6, between 9am-5pm from Monday to Saturday, at the Kenny Gallery in the Liosbán Retail Park, Tuam Road.