Laois artists finds inspiration in bogs and their secrets
Artist Kate Knowles pictured with her painting of a tree on Abbeyleix Bog which is part of her exhibition Photos: Stan Henderson
AN art exhibition by artist Kate Knowles from Wolfhill, which is inspired by her love for bogs and the secrets they keep, features vibrant and detailed paintings of the tranquil and scenic Abbeyleix Bog and the colourful collection is currently on display in Abbeyleix library.
The title of Kate’s exhibition is From the Ground I Walk and the talented artist loves en plein painting, when the weather permits. Although she didn’t do art in her younger years at school, Kate said that she always felt she was an artist at heart and she did take the subject for her leaving certificate and was the only student in the exam hall where, she said, the supervisor fell asleep for the three-hour duration of the exam.
When Kate was 19, she trained to become a nurse and worked in a Dublin hospital from the age of 24. However, in 2021 she decided to retire a little early to realise her life-long dream of becoming a full-time artist.
Beginning classes in 2015 with Carlow artist Lorraine Fenlon, who became her first mentor, Kate then studied levels five and six at Abbeyleix FEC art department through co-ordinators Jackie Carter, Edel O’Keefe and Jock Nicholl.
The first solo show that Kate had was in the sought after Abbeyleix library in 2019, which holds monthly exhibitions for artists. The venue is so popular among painters that, according to gallery manager Jackie Costigan, monthly slots are booked out until 2029.
Speaking to the Laois Nationalist at Abbeyleix library, Kate said that she works full-time in her art studio in Wolfhill and that she also teaches art classes.
“In my art, I’m concentrating on the ground that we walk on and the natural world around us. I am always wondering how people lived in the past. I love to spend time walking out in nature because during the process of walking, you can make up, wonder and imagine. I love the bog and the bog is hugely important in my work.
‘‘The paintings in this exhibition have a lot of the bog in them. When you’re walking around the bog, you can see the past and you can tell the future. I did a higher diploma in regional history and through that it has given me a huge toolbox to see the past and to think critically about it. There is so much of our history buried in the bog â our past is there.” The exhibition runs until the end of March and it’s well worth paying a visit. Kate’s work can be found on her website https://kateknowlesfineart.com, she can be emailed at ktjknowles@gmail.com and found on Facebook and Instagram.
