ART
Celebrating Creativity: Aoibhin Maguire’s Collaboration with Completedworks Marks Four Decades of London Fashion Week
An insight into Maguire’s journey of artistic ingenuity that captivated the fashion industry
BY VANESA KRIZONYTE
In celebration of London Fashion Week marking forty years, Completedworks, a renowned jewellery and ceramics designer, is featuring a captivating collection of works by Northern Irish artist Aoibhin Maguire. Situated in the comfort of Hollie Bowden’s naturalistic interior adorned with raw industrial finishes, Maguire greeted us with her vibrant energy for an exclusive insight into her artistic philosophy and the collection in the showroom.
Introduction:
I make very bright, colorful, bold paintings. One of the main things I want to get across is my overall love for the physicality of paint and the breath it gives me away from the anxieties of everyday life. The works mix my vivid imagination with personal tales to create these hybrid worlds and I want to get that crazy chaoticness across through the paint.
How do you represent reality and imagination in your artwork?
I keep a database of different symbols. They all come from events that happened in my life and from memory. Imagination comes through the brushstrokes and where the paint overlaps a lot more.
One of your past collections ‘Fuming Screaming’ contains smiley faces, what’s the story behind that?
I wanted to do something very literal for a change to draw the viewer in. The text fuming & screaming was from a poem I wrote. My poems form a lot of my titles, and background for my paintings. The smiley face represents the masking of emotion. I’ve been interested in ideas of imposter syndrome and fake it till you make it type of thing and that is something a lot of artists are thinking about at the very beginning of their career. The palm tree represents escapism as I create my own worlds.
Aoibhin Maguire, Fuming Screaming, 2021, Acrylic and mixed media on canvas, 130 x 110cm, £1,800.
Would you call your work political? Do you intend for your artwork to raise awareness on mental health?
Most artists are told when they are in art school all art is political. However, what I find the most interesting is observing people looking at my work, because I don’t give that much away when talking about it. A title of an artwork is leading you somewhere, but not leading you all the way. This allows people to take what they need from the work and come to their own conclusions.
I really try to bring my emotions into my work. In our day to day lives we are told to shut our emotions off and just focus on doing the task of what needs to be done and go into work. I like to flip that with painting because I am a very emotional person. I also think a lot about the women’s monthly cycle and how we live in a 28 day cycle rather than a 24 hour cycle and bringing this into my work in terms of how I work and being kind to yourself and how as an artist the nine to five is not always possible.
I am very attracted to your use of vibrant colour. It is being presented more in the art market but it is still quite rare for artists to experiment with such powerful colours. I have been looking at the piece in front of us as we speak, and it’s got a touch of dark colouring on the side, does this reflect an emotion you were feeling whilst you were painting?
Aoibhin Maguire X Completedworks for London Fashion Week City Wide Celebrations. Image featuring, The Island, 85cm x 90cm, mixed media on canvas, 2022, £1200 and Completedworks Ceramics.
In this piece the border is a lot darker, it is crashing tsunami waves, they symbolise being overwhelmed. I wanted the waves to be a frame to the painting, the inside is my world, and you can see it but you can’t come in.
How is your colour palette playing in the art market?
I’ve never been able to stick to a limited colour palette, so much of my enjoyment comes from colour and coming up with different colour combinations. A lot of artists will apply rules to their work. I do apply some rules, like using every colour apart from one but ultimately I try not to limit myself.
If you are expressing your emotions, vibrant colours is the best way to go about it!
Exactly. I like painting some of the darker things in my work in super bright colours, like bright pink or orange because there’s humour in it. I think humour and colour can be so powerful in making difficult topics more approachable.
Your art sounds like a guidance to mental health, instead of looking at the negative in our day to day life, we should replace it with bright colours and look at the good side of the whole thing?!
And in a way it’s playing with this forced positivity.
Aoibhin Maguire, The Encounter, Oil on Canvas, 35cm x 45cm, 2024, £650, Displayed at Completedworks.
How did the collaboration with Completedworks come about?
Completedworks reached out to Bomb Factory asking if anyone would be interested in a potential show in their showroom during London Fashion Week. I’m really interested in fashion. I’m excited to see where it goes. The showroom is absolutely beautiful!
Aoibhin Maguire x Completedworks for London Fashion Week City Wide Celebrations, 69A Lisson Street.
Aoibhin Maguire x Completedworks for London Fashion Week City Wide Celebrations, 69A Lisson Street.
Aoibhin Maguire, Impression of an impression, 10 x 15cm, Oil on canvas, 2023, £200.
Do you think participating in the London Fashion Week City Wide Celebrations may influence your future artwork?
I think it could do particularly because of my love for bright colours and bright fashion. I actually have a lot of comments that my work is quite textile because of the thickness of the paint.
I’m quite interested to see the interpretations and comments about my work from a fashion based audience.
Despite the rarity of vibrant colours in the art market, Maguire skillfully employs them to evoke emotion and ignite discussions on mental health. With her vivid imagination and personal experiences, Maguire crafts hybrid fantastical paintings that transport viewers from anxieties, encouraging us to look for the positive. Maguire’s collaboration with Completedworks not only showcases her talent but also opens doors to new creative avenues within the retail environment. We are excited to witness the marriage of fashion and art, bringing like-minded individuals together to Completedworks.
Find the exhibition collaboration at: 69A Lisson Street, NW1 5DA . 16th February – 20th February 2024 (Saturday closed)
Links:
Aoibhin Maguire Upcoming Solo Show: Opening on Saturday 9th March in Mayfair with Daa Art Platform. Bookings via Camile@daa-art.com or Instagram @daa.art.platform.
We wish all the best to Aoibhin Maguire and Completedworks, with excitement to see their future creations.
