Aidan Butler

I have been painting intermittently since my teens, although it’s only since 1997 have I been painting professionally. In 2001, I was commissioned by the state to provide paintings for Ennis Hospital, and I have work in public and corporate collections around the country.
In recent years I have exhibited at the RUA exhibition and participated in Art Ireland on numerous occasions and had success at solo and group exhibitions across all of Ireland.

I paint in oils and pastels, allowing inspiration from one to feed into the other.
My loose impasto oil paintings are painted with little conventional methodology and almost entirely from memory. I apply paint without an underlying drawing, and see where it takes me. Using pastels I employ the same methods, but sometimes the more defined work needs a slightly different approach, using sketches and photographs when required.

 I discovered pastels in the 1980’s, being amazed at how much control I had in terms of drawing, tone and colour. My work developed to a more loose style in tandem with stronger deeper tones achieved by using randomly brushed applications of textured gesso and scrubbed into the surface. I love pastel, and although the delicate operation of framing and transporting them is a pain, it’s worth it to see a finished piece in place. I may fix the early layers, but never the last couple.

Contact Details: