Aoibhín Maguire, born in 1997, is a painter from Belfast, Northern Ireland, living and working in London. She obtained her BA in Fine Art from Lancaster University and graduated from the Royal College of Art with an MA in Painting. Maguire has exhibited in group exhibitions across the UK, Ireland, and internationally, including The Lido Stores, Barbican Arts Group Trust, Art on a Postcard, Irving Gallery, Completedworks, The Function Suite, The Tub, Hackney and Rowe Galleries. She had her first solo show at Pollen Gallery and Studios, Belfast in 2023. Recently, Maguire was a guest speaker with Artvocacy, collaborating with We Are Cognito on 'Leveraging Creative Arts for World Peace, Opportunities, and Youth Transformation.'
Maguire’s painting practice explores the overlap between the actual and fictitious in our everyday lives. Mixing vivid imagination with personal tales, she creates a visual dialogue that transcends temporal confines, drawing inspiration from memory, nostalgia, Celtic tradition and the nuanced narrative of growing up in Belfast. Through layers of bright colour, she converges commonplace worries into worlds that embrace the disorder of existence; a perpetual oscillation between emotional extremes, where fear and desperation run parallel to hope and love.
Whilst in a state of reverie, she creates mindscapes; emotional landscapes of the past, present and future. Recurrent motifs and surrealist symbolism act as portals, transporting viewers into a realm where the tangible and the fantastical coalesce. Nostalgia, an undercurrent in the work, sparks collective memories, fostering contemplation on the complexities of identity. Whilst painting, she thinks about the rhythm of the women’s monthly cycle, allowing its natural acdence to inspire its working pattern.
Drawing on a multitude of art historical, literary, poetic, and personal references, Maguire’s work abstractly reflects on the confusion surrounding Irish/Northern Irish identity, as she intertwines mythology with personal recollections. Her paintings are a testament to the tactile and visceral nature of paint, with vibrant colours and textures acting as emotional conduits, as she layers and scrapes away paint, mirroring the constant ebb and flow of the human experience.
Maguire’s painting practice explores the overlap between the actual and fictitious in our everyday lives. Mixing vivid imagination with personal tales, she creates a visual dialogue that transcends temporal confines, drawing inspiration from memory, nostalgia, Celtic tradition and the nuanced narrative of growing up in Belfast. Through layers of bright colour, she converges commonplace worries into worlds that embrace the disorder of existence; a perpetual oscillation between emotional extremes, where fear and desperation run parallel to hope and love.
Whilst in a state of reverie, she creates mindscapes; emotional landscapes of the past, present and future. Recurrent motifs and surrealist symbolism act as portals, transporting viewers into a realm where the tangible and the fantastical coalesce. Nostalgia, an undercurrent in the work, sparks collective memories, fostering contemplation on the complexities of identity. Whilst painting, she thinks about the rhythm of the women’s monthly cycle, allowing its natural acdence to inspire its working pattern.
Drawing on a multitude of art historical, literary, poetic, and personal references, Maguire’s work abstractly reflects on the confusion surrounding Irish/Northern Irish identity, as she intertwines mythology with personal recollections. Her paintings are a testament to the tactile and visceral nature of paint, with vibrant colours and textures acting as emotional conduits, as she layers and scrapes away paint, mirroring the constant ebb and flow of the human experience.
EDUCATION
2022 Royal College of Art, MA Painting
2019 Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts, BA (Hons) Fine Art, FIRST CLASS HONOURS
2018 Rowe Arts, University of North Carolina, Charlotte (Exchange Program)
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2023 This Earth Is Alien To Me, Pollen Gallery, Belfast, Northern Ireland
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2024 Art on a Postcard, International Women’s Day Exhibition, 99-103 Long Acre, London, UK
A Room of One’s Own, Irving Gallery, Oxford, UK
Completedwork presents Aoibhin Maguire (Collaboration), Completed Works, London, UK
Fierce Scandal, Lido Stores, Margate, UK
2023 Christmas Exhibition, Bomb Factory Art Foundation, London, UK
Echoes of Belonging, Daa Art, London, UK
The Lido Open, The Lido Stores, Margate, UK
Seventeen, The Bomb Factory Art Foundation, Marylebone, London, UK It’ll Be
Alright, The Alchemy Experiment, Glasgow, UK
Inaugural, The Bomb Factory Art Foundation, Marylebone, London, UK
2022 Barbican Arts Group Trust, Selected for Open Call, BAGT, London, UK
Towards A New Intellectual Cosmos: A Reflection on Contemporary Forms Of
Expression, Daa Art, London, UK
Togetherness, Winter Exhibition, D31 Art Gallery, Doncaster, UK
Pull over and take a cig, Espacio Gallery, London, UK
Come one, Come all, The Function Suite, London, UK
Rupture Alumni Online Retrospective and physical exhibition at Hampton Wick Jubilee Event, RuptureXIBIT, London, UK
What Is Becoming Us, RuptureXIBIT, London, UK
RCA 22 Degree Show, Royal College of Art, London, UK
2021 Work In Progress, Royal College of Art, London, UK
Coping, in Colour, RuptureXIBIT, London, UK
2020 Life on Venus, The Tub, Hackney, London, UK
Feast: Holiday, Now, online ‘e-zine’ exhibition made by first year painting students at the RCA, UK
Life on Venus, The Tub, Hackney, London, UK
2019 H(U)MAN, Open Eye Gallery, Liverpool, UK
Beyond the Canvas, The Story, Lancaster, UK
Miscellaneous Cartographies, Bowland Drawing Space, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
Coordinate, LICA Degree Show, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
2018 Aoibhin Maguire and Myrthe Biesheuvel, Baku Gallery, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA (Duo exhibition)
Annual Juried Exhibition, Rowe Galleries, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Local International at Spirit Square Arts Centre, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA (Duo exhibition)
Resist, C3 Lab, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
18-25, The Herbarium, Lancaster, UK
Global Experiences, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
Presented Artist of the Month, Charlotte Art League, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
2017 Mineral Spirits, Rowe Galleries, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Coalesced, Theatre Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
AWARDS AND RESIDENCIES
2020-22 Sidney Perry Foundation, MA Sponsorship
2020-21 The Chizel Educational Trust, MA Sponsorship
2020 Col Arts Bursary Finalist
PUBLICATIONS
2024 Celebrating Creativity: Aoibhin Maguire’s collaboration with Completedworks marks four decades of London Fashion Week, Interview with Krizone
2023 Auc Art, In The Studio with Aoibhin Maguire
2023 It'll be Alright, Publication
2022 Daa Art, Interview
2022 Ghost Show, Publication
2022 Megazine Summer Edition, Publication
2021 EMERGING: A Room Full of Art, Article, Sunday World
2021 I think since Covid people are much more appreciative of art, Interview/Article, Sunday Life and Northern Ireland World
2022 Royal College of Art, MA Painting
2019 Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts, BA (Hons) Fine Art, FIRST CLASS HONOURS
2018 Rowe Arts, University of North Carolina, Charlotte (Exchange Program)
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2023 This Earth Is Alien To Me, Pollen Gallery, Belfast, Northern Ireland
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2024 Art on a Postcard, International Women’s Day Exhibition, 99-103 Long Acre, London, UK
A Room of One’s Own, Irving Gallery, Oxford, UK
Completedwork presents Aoibhin Maguire (Collaboration), Completed Works, London, UK
Fierce Scandal, Lido Stores, Margate, UK
2023 Christmas Exhibition, Bomb Factory Art Foundation, London, UK
Echoes of Belonging, Daa Art, London, UK
The Lido Open, The Lido Stores, Margate, UK
Seventeen, The Bomb Factory Art Foundation, Marylebone, London, UK It’ll Be
Alright, The Alchemy Experiment, Glasgow, UK
Inaugural, The Bomb Factory Art Foundation, Marylebone, London, UK
2022 Barbican Arts Group Trust, Selected for Open Call, BAGT, London, UK
Towards A New Intellectual Cosmos: A Reflection on Contemporary Forms Of
Expression, Daa Art, London, UK
Togetherness, Winter Exhibition, D31 Art Gallery, Doncaster, UK
Pull over and take a cig, Espacio Gallery, London, UK
Come one, Come all, The Function Suite, London, UK
Rupture Alumni Online Retrospective and physical exhibition at Hampton Wick Jubilee Event, RuptureXIBIT, London, UK
What Is Becoming Us, RuptureXIBIT, London, UK
RCA 22 Degree Show, Royal College of Art, London, UK
2021 Work In Progress, Royal College of Art, London, UK
Coping, in Colour, RuptureXIBIT, London, UK
2020 Life on Venus, The Tub, Hackney, London, UK
Feast: Holiday, Now, online ‘e-zine’ exhibition made by first year painting students at the RCA, UK
Life on Venus, The Tub, Hackney, London, UK
2019 H(U)MAN, Open Eye Gallery, Liverpool, UK
Beyond the Canvas, The Story, Lancaster, UK
Miscellaneous Cartographies, Bowland Drawing Space, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
Coordinate, LICA Degree Show, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
2018 Aoibhin Maguire and Myrthe Biesheuvel, Baku Gallery, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA (Duo exhibition)
Annual Juried Exhibition, Rowe Galleries, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Local International at Spirit Square Arts Centre, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA (Duo exhibition)
Resist, C3 Lab, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
18-25, The Herbarium, Lancaster, UK
Global Experiences, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
Presented Artist of the Month, Charlotte Art League, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
2017 Mineral Spirits, Rowe Galleries, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
Coalesced, Theatre Charlotte, Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
AWARDS AND RESIDENCIES
2020-22 Sidney Perry Foundation, MA Sponsorship
2020-21 The Chizel Educational Trust, MA Sponsorship
2020 Col Arts Bursary Finalist
PUBLICATIONS
2024 Celebrating Creativity: Aoibhin Maguire’s collaboration with Completedworks marks four decades of London Fashion Week, Interview with Krizone
2023 Auc Art, In The Studio with Aoibhin Maguire
2023 It'll be Alright, Publication
2022 Daa Art, Interview
2022 Ghost Show, Publication
2022 Megazine Summer Edition, Publication
2021 EMERGING: A Room Full of Art, Article, Sunday World
2021 I think since Covid people are much more appreciative of art, Interview/Article, Sunday Life and Northern Ireland World
LECTURES/TUTORIALS
April 2023 Leveraging Creative Arts For World Peace, Opportunities And Youth Transformation -Healing through the Arts and finding Self Expression, Guest Speaker with Artvocacy in collaboration with We Are Cognito
April 2022 University of Sunderland, School of Art, Artist Talk
April 2022 University of Sunderland, School of Art, Visiting Tutor
February 2022 Royal College of Art, Artist Talk