Debbie Dawson

Artist Bio

Debbie Dawson is a Cork based visual artist working with glass & painting. She has exhibited extensively; locally, nationally, and internationally including USA, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Romania and Shanghai where she had a solo show in 2014. Her work is held in private and public collections including the National Museum of Ireland and the Office of Public Works. She has extensive teaching experience, delivering masterclasses in Shanghai University, Bild-Werk Academy in Germany, several artist-in-prison schemes and as a full time lecturer in MTU Crawford College of Art & Design. She was previous chairperson of the Glass Society of Ireland. She has received numerous awards including from Cork City & County Councils, Arts Council, Design & Crafts Council and Culture Ireland.

Artist Statement

Debbie Dawson is an established Cork based visual artist. Working primarily with painting and glass Dawson’s practice is rooted in memory as seen through an autobiographical lens. By utilising specific moments from her childhood, along with photographic references as starting points, she creates dynamic compositions of utopian type panoramas. In her paintings she uses lively mark-making incorporating both abstract and figurative elements to create ambiguous scenarios, while in her glass work she combines photographic decals with painterly gestures to create collage-type scenes.

The work remains open ended, imbued with intangible interpretations, allowing the viewer to draw their own conclusions.

Membership: Backwater Artists Network