Grace Cunningham

Grace (Collins) Cunningham was born in Galway in 1972. She began her studies at the Burren College of Art, Co. Clare, continued on to Limerick School of Art and Design and finally graduated with honours from Cluain Mhuire (GMIT) where she specialised in fine art painting and printmaking.

"Chiaroscuro" is the Italian term used to describe the technique in which Grace paints. While being influenced by the old masters such as Rembrandt and Vermeer, she also has a huge interest in John Singer Sargent and Edward Hopper. Grace tries to evoke atmosphere in her paintings while creating dark shadows and strong lights.

Her influences brought her to New England (home of Sargent & Hopper), where she travelled extensively, following the routes of these artists, discovering their influences - nature, music and literature. This gave Grace a broader perspective of art and all its creative outlets.

Presently, Grace runs her own painting school in Salthill, Galway where she teaches adult painting classes. When she is not teaching Grace spends her time creating her own work, painting animals, a purely self-indulgent passion. She is a meticulous painter, emphasising in great detail all the aspects of her subject where she specialises in oil paintings of dogs and horses. Her work is characterised by a soft realistic style, which is well suited to the depiction of animals.

Because of her deep understanding and love for her subject she seems to capture the animals individual personality and their soft sympathetic expression and her paintings often have a serene, peaceful quality. Graces’ influences include such famous animal artist, Sir Edwin Landseer, John Emms and Arthur Wardle.