Last Friday evening, art and culture lovers were treated to a very special event to mark the official opening my solo exhibition, Looking for Light, at Íontas Theatre and Arts Space, Castleblayney, Co. Monaghan.

The large exhibition foyer was transformed into a cathedral for the soul

with fifteen limited edition Digigraphie prints adorning the walls like sacred objects,

float mounted and encased in slick black frames.

The Looking for Light centre piece, a large chiffon print of an ascending woman, levitates below a roof window, bathed in natural light streaming down from the heavens.

Special guest Noelle McAlinden officially opened proceedings with a beautifully powerful speech about the journey that has brought my photography to this point.

She spoke so eloquently of the inspirational and spiritual qualities of my imagery and the importance of recognising the heroine’s journey in all of us.

As Noelle looked up towards the chiffon piece now trembling in the ether, she spoke eloquently about the craving we all have to ascend into the light.

Noelle has worked in the arts section for a number of decades but more recently has focused on arts activism. She works with a number of individual artist, arts groups and venues around Ireland to promote the power of the arts, tirelessly campaigning for social and policy change.

Singer Niamh McCormack then took her seat at the piano and enchanted everyone with her stunning renditions of L’ascia Ch’io Pianga by Handel, a story about a woman imprisoned and how she is dealing with her fate and the accompanying emotions.

Cosmic love by Florence and the Machine, was a nod to my favourite music to listen to while editing my images (you should all know this by now).

L’heure exquise by Hahn, a song involving scenes of nature at dusk and about the exquisite hour of the day, a favourite of Niamh’s, she sang it just as the sun was setting on Íontas.

Then Into My Arms by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds echoed around the walls like a hallowed hymn, performed by Niamh with a haunting beauty that will remain with those gathered at Íontas last Friday night forever.

The final offering,  Niamh’s classical interpretation of Wuthering heights by Kate Bush just blew everyone away. I had heard Niamh’s performance of this timeless classic at the Market House in Monaghan some years back and I knew at that very moment that I must have an exhibition opening someday just to be able to hear Niamh perform it live again in the company of family and friends. That day was Friday the 20th of May.

I’d like to thank everyone who attended to share this very special evening, Noelle McAlinden, Niamh McCormack, David Maine for all his hard work behind the scenes at Íontas, brilliant photographer Barry Cronin and Cavan Arts Office, Epson and Hand Imaging for all their support in making Looking for Light a glorious reality.

The exhibitions runs until the 9th August. It’s open daily with extended opening times if there’s an event on in the theatre space, please ring Íontas on 042-9753400 to check opening times for specific dates.

I’m going to make a digital copy of the brochure available to subscribers on my mailing list, so if you haven’t already done so, make sure to subscribe now as I’ll be sending the exclusive email out to mailing list subscribers only next week. See below.