Over 15,000 people are expected to attend the year’s biggest art show, which will give Irish art lovers the unique chance to get their hands on 100 pieces of original artwork for €100 each on a first-come, first-served basis.

Achill-based painter Padraig McCaul found an enthusiastic audience for his work when he held an exhibition at the Kidogo Art House in Fremantle, Western Australia this summer.

"The response was absolutely brilliant, there was a lot of interest not just among the Irish Diaspora but also from the Australian community, with the largest newspaper in the region doing a big article on my exhibition," said a delighted Padraig who has now returned to his Achill home.

Padraig spent 18 months working in software development in San Francisco where he developed a business plan for becoming an artist.

A business mentor, he advises artists on understanding their audience and finding out how to reach them and also how to overcome business challenges.

Padraig played the saxophone in a Dublin Indie band called The Harvest Ministers who recorded four albums and were signed to London's Setanta label. He now plays with the Mayo Concert Orchestra.

The Mayo artist takes the inspiration for his warm and vivid portraits of the landscape on his beloved Achill island from one of Australia's best-known sons, the artist Sidney Nolan.

"I am very much inspired by Nolan's simplicity and the way he captures the colours, the textures and the vastness of the Australian outback.

"It encouraged me to start using strong, primary colours and textures in the context of our own Irish landscape.

"I find the warmth of the colour is something that people really respond to, it gives them the feeling of almost being in the landscape," said Padraig.

This year’s Art Source sold out in record time and features over 130 contemporary artists and 20 Irish and international galleries gathering together to showcase painting, sculpture, photography, illustration, prints and ceramic art.

“Art Source offers visitors the opportunity to purchase a one-off affordable artwork to make their home unique and also the opportunity to meet the artists and hear about their work,” said show organiser Patrick O’Sullivan.

There is a huge emphasis on visitor involvement at Art Source, and this year the show features interactive oil and resin painting demonstrations and there are free children’s art workshops for under 12s.

Gormley’s Fine Art will be showing a selection of original screen prints by the anonymous British-based artist and political activist Banksy who has built a huge following despite his identity remaining a mystery.

Among the pieces being shown by Gormley's are Banksy's iconic Flying Copper image of a policeman with a yellow smiley face, his Girl With A Balloon and his Tesco Tomato Soup Can parody on the work by Andy Warhol.

A world-first cookbook is going to be a recipe for success at Art Source as two brothers undertake to raise funds to change the lives of impoverished children and displaced people abroad.

Andrew and Calvin Sweeney, the founders of Syrias Vibes, will be selling The Artist's Cookbook which features creative recipes, illustrated by the artwork of 100 Irish and international artists.

Art Source takes place at the RDS, Dublin, from November 10-12, admission is €10 adults, €8 OAPs. Children under 16 free only if accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Opening times: Friday November 10: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m, Saturday, November 11: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday, November 12: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Blog

This is a blog post I wrote back in 2014 about the first workshop I ran on Achill Island. I'm republishing it here, along with some others, to make sure I have them all in one place on my website.
Revisiting an interview I gave to the Mayo News in 2014 about moving to Achill and living and working on the island
Ten years is a long time! In 2013 I gave an interview to James Sweetman for his online e-Zine and Blog. In it we discussed my life before I became a painter and how I made the transition to full time artist. James is a highly-rated and well-respected Executive and Personal Coach, Trainer, Keynote Speaker, Author and Columnist, and he had some great questions. Below is the interview in full..
This is an article I wrote for the US website EmptyEasel.com in 2014. It is a short guide to my own philosophy around making a living as an artist.
In the world of art, few subjects have captured the imagination and creativity of artists as powerfully as landscapes. Here is an article written for the benefit of Google SEO :-)
My new solo exhibition, ‘The Ties That Bind’, opens in the Doorway Gallery, Dublin on July 7th and runs until July 28th. Here is an interview I gave to the Doorway Gallery as part of the social media campaign....
The RTE Nationwide TV programme is now available to view on the RTE Player.
In August this year I got to spend a magical 8 days at the Cill Rialaig artist residency in Co.Kerry
RTE Nationwide visited Achill in May, 2021 to film me in my studio and surroundings and to talk about my work and time on Achill Island
A DAY IN THE LIFE: PADRAIG MCCAUL, 20 APRIL 2021
An insightful, glowing review of Fáinne Óir from author and film producer, Kevin Fortuna.
Fáinne Óir opened to standing ovations in New York and Castlebar. Here is a comprehensive review by the Irish Echo, the oldest and largest selling Irish newspaper in USA.
Composer and conductor Kathy Fahey is bringing an ambitious new music and contemporary dance production to stage
I am absolutely thrilled to let you know about the world premiere of a new music and contemporary dance production, Fáinne Óir, which takes place on September 20th in the Theatre Royal, Castlebar before moving to New York for a performance in the Symphony Space Theatre, Broadway, on September 26th.
I am very excited to have been asked to create a set of new original paintings to be used as the backdrops for a new Irish contemporary music and dance production, Fáinne Óir.
A MAYO artist who is just back from a sell-out exhibition in Australia will be showing his vivid portraits of the Achill landscape at Ireland’s premier art fair Art Source, in the RDS from November 10 to 12. http://www.con-telegraph.ie/news/roundup/articles/2017/11/01/4147921-mayo-artist-in-the-national-spotlight-after-australian-success/
I held my first exhibition in Australia in July this year at the Kidogo Arthouse, Fremantle. It was a great success and turned out to be a complete sell out.
I recently exhibited at the Affordable Art Fair in London with the Doorway Gallery. It's always an exciting fair to be at and this was, I think, my sixth time at the fair. Here's a link to a great review of the show from William McKenzie.
Padraig McCaul paintings to feature in new national Eircode marketing campaign
Summer 2016 is going to be very busy, with paintings workshops, exhibitions and a major national marketing campaign to look forward to.
This is an interview I gave to the Galway Advertiser in the run up to my exhibition at the Townhall Theatre in Galway in March this year.

Mayo artist in the national spotlight after Australian success - The Connaught Telegraph, 1/11/17

11/1/2017

Over 15,000 people are expected to attend the year’s biggest art show, which will give Irish art lovers the unique chance to get their hands on 100 pieces of original artwork for €100 each on a first-come, first-served basis.

Achill-based painter Padraig McCaul found an enthusiastic audience for his work when he held an exhibition at the Kidogo Art House in Fremantle, Western Australia this summer.

"The response was absolutely brilliant, there was a lot of interest not just among the Irish Diaspora but also from the Australian community, with the largest newspaper in the region doing a big article on my exhibition," said a delighted Padraig who has now returned to his Achill home.

Padraig spent 18 months working in software development in San Francisco where he developed a business plan for becoming an artist.

A business mentor, he advises artists on understanding their audience and finding out how to reach them and also how to overcome business challenges.

Padraig played the saxophone in a Dublin Indie band called The Harvest Ministers who recorded four albums and were signed to London's Setanta label. He now plays with the Mayo Concert Orchestra.

The Mayo artist takes the inspiration for his warm and vivid portraits of the landscape on his beloved Achill island from one of Australia's best-known sons, the artist Sidney Nolan.

"I am very much inspired by Nolan's simplicity and the way he captures the colours, the textures and the vastness of the Australian outback.

"It encouraged me to start using strong, primary colours and textures in the context of our own Irish landscape.

"I find the warmth of the colour is something that people really respond to, it gives them the feeling of almost being in the landscape," said Padraig.

This year’s Art Source sold out in record time and features over 130 contemporary artists and 20 Irish and international galleries gathering together to showcase painting, sculpture, photography, illustration, prints and ceramic art.

“Art Source offers visitors the opportunity to purchase a one-off affordable artwork to make their home unique and also the opportunity to meet the artists and hear about their work,” said show organiser Patrick O’Sullivan.

There is a huge emphasis on visitor involvement at Art Source, and this year the show features interactive oil and resin painting demonstrations and there are free children’s art workshops for under 12s.

Gormley’s Fine Art will be showing a selection of original screen prints by the anonymous British-based artist and political activist Banksy who has built a huge following despite his identity remaining a mystery.

Among the pieces being shown by Gormley's are Banksy's iconic Flying Copper image of a policeman with a yellow smiley face, his Girl With A Balloon and his Tesco Tomato Soup Can parody on the work by Andy Warhol.

A world-first cookbook is going to be a recipe for success at Art Source as two brothers undertake to raise funds to change the lives of impoverished children and displaced people abroad.

Andrew and Calvin Sweeney, the founders of Syrias Vibes, will be selling The Artist's Cookbook which features creative recipes, illustrated by the artwork of 100 Irish and international artists.

Art Source takes place at the RDS, Dublin, from November 10-12, admission is €10 adults, €8 OAPs. Children under 16 free only if accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Opening times: Friday November 10: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m, Saturday, November 11: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday, November 12: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.