About Me & My Paintings
I paint the places that bring us back to ourselves.
The road home.
The beach from childhood.
The landscape that reminds you of someone, somewhere, or some part of yourself you don’t want to lose.
I believe our walls should hold more than decorative things.
They should hold a feeling of connection to the places and moments that have shaped us.
In a world that often encourages us to rush, replace, scroll and move on, there is something quietly powerful about choosing to live with things that make us pause.
That is what my paintings offer - not just a view of the Irish landscape or coast, but a quiet reminder of what matters.
More Than a Landscape
Hi, I’m Fiona, an Irish artist originally from Co. Tyrone, now living and painting in Co. Meath.
I create expressive, textured paintings inspired by the Irish landscape and coast.
But really, my work is about more than the landscape.
It is about the places that stay with us.
Why Place Matters
Some places become part of who we are.
That is why I paint them.
Not as perfect copies of a scene, but as emotional landscapes - full of colour, movement, texture and feeling.
I want my paintings to bring the outside in, but more than that, I want them to bring meaning into a home.
It should feel lived in. Personal. Grounded. Full of pieces that mean something.
A Quiet Beginning
I grew up surrounded by fields, a forest and the River Blackwater. Our home was filled with traditional Irish music and an appreciation for country life and the landscape around us.
A few steps outside the kitchen door, the fields opened out towards the evening sky.
At the time, I don’t think I fully appreciated the beauty of those sunsets. They were simply part of home.
It is only now, when I go back, that I realise how much the changing light, wide skies and feeling of space have found their way into my paintings.
As a child, I was very shy and didn’t always find it easy to speak. Drawing and painting gave me a voice.
For a long time, though, I kept that part to myself.
Waiting for the Right Time
I think I always knew art would become a bigger part of my life one day, but I followed a different path first, working as a primary school teacher.
Painting never disappeared from my life. It was just something I kept in the background.
I spent years wondering whether I would ever be brave enough to give the creative part of myself more space.
The weeks slipped into months.
The months slipped into years.
And before I knew it, another year had passed - another year waiting for the right time.
I know many people carry some version of that feeling.
The thing they keep putting off.
The part of themselves they keep quiet.
The life they hope they might one day have the courage to move towards.
Something Shifted
Towards the end of 2020, I was organising old family photographs, including pictures of my father as a boy in the same place where I grew up years later.
Something about that stopped me.
It struck me how much a place can hold - people, memory, connection and feeling.
It also struck me how quickly time passes.
Around then, something shifted. I realised I couldn’t keep waiting for the perfect time to begin.
I didn’t suddenly become confident.
But I did begin.
I painted in the pockets of time I had - after work, late at night when our two children were asleep. I shared my art online. I built my website. I took small steps before I felt ready.
Slowly, painting became less of a quiet background dream.
What I Believe
I believe creativity is not a luxury. It is a way of coming back to ourselves.
I believe the places that shaped us deserve to be remembered.
I believe a painting can hold more than colour and texture. It can hold a feeling, a person, a memory, a moment of hope.
I believe homes should be filled with pieces that feel personal - not just things chosen because they match the sofa, but things that make you feel something every time you pass them.
That is what I try to create through my paintings: pieces that bring colour and atmosphere into a room, but also stillness, possibility and emotional connection.
Finding Joy
I carry with me the memory of a home filled with Irish music. My parents were both fiddle players, and I grew up seeing the joy and connection that creativity can bring to everyday life.
That has stayed with me.
When I’m at the easel - apron on, Irish music playing, paintbrush or palette knife in hand - I feel content in knowing I am finally following what I always should have been doing.
Since then, moments that once felt far away have become part of my life as an artist: my first solo exhibition, taking part in Art Source at the RDS in Dublin, sending paintings to collectors, and seeing people connect deeply with places I have painted.
Those moments still mean a lot because they remind me what can happen when we stop waiting for the right time and begin.
Who My Art is For
My paintings are for people who feel deeply connected to place.
For quiet thinkers, nature lovers, memory keepers and people who want their homes to feel personal, peaceful and full of meaning.
For those who carry certain places with them.
A painting can become a small daily return - to a place, a person, a memory, or a feeling you want to keep close.
Find a Piece That Holds Meaning for You
If a place, memory or feeling has stayed with you, I hope you find a painting here that helps you hold onto it.
Explore my collections of Irish coastlines, landscapes and wildflowers - and perhaps find a piece that feels like it belongs to your story.
LMFM Radio Interview
I was delighted to speak with Gerry Kelly on LMFM’s Late Lunch about my solo exhibition, Echoes of the Land, at the Toradh Gallery.
We spoke about my journey into painting, the Irish landscape and coast, and the emotional connection we often hold to places and memories.
It was a lovely opportunity to share more of the story behind my work and the places that continue to inspire it.
You can listen to the full interview below.