Desmond Kenny

Local artist, Desmond Kenny commenced as Artist in Residence at Draíocht in April 2003.

Desmond, who lives with his family in Hartstown, is a self taught painter who has been painting and exhibiting in Ireland and abroad since 1988, including a major solo exhibition at Draíocht in June 2001. Desmond is well known in Blanchardstown and further afield for his lively depictions of urban life, particularly Dublin's inner city. Painted in relief in layers of impasto paint, Kenny's paintings take on a sculptural form as they stand sometimes an inch or more thick off the canvas. His work also reveals a quiet compassion in his observation of the homeless, beggars and familiar street characters who, with spiralling rents and increased costs of living, have been left behind in the march of economic progress.

Desmond has exhibited widely in Ireland: 2002 at the West Cork Arts Centre, Skibbereen and the Tinahely Arts Centre, Wicklow. Previous exhibitions include the Toradh Gallery, Duleek (1999), Tig File, Cork (1998) and Liberty Hall, (1997). His work is in many collections including Bewleys, SIPTU, and Fingal County Council.