The renaissance of the forest in contemporary art in Ireland

Abstract

During the last decade or more, there has been an exceptional level of interest in the representation of forests by artists in Ireland. While these forest images are distinctively individual in many respects, as might be expected given the reputation of these artists for searching and innovative expression, what is equally significant for the purposes of this discussion are those characteristics in common that collectively suggest the impact of contemporary socio-cultural factors to which these artists are all exposed. This chapter considers such common elements, and the contexts that may have prompted them, as well as aspects of the individual artists’ responses. As the remarkable collective interest in forest imagery among contemporary artists in Ireland has not previously been examined, this chapter serves as an introduction to the theme by considering this phenomenon within the historical context of the forest space, its social connotations, and selected established conventions regarding its visual representation in Ireland.