What led you to mainly doing figurative work?

I was painting landscapes back in 2012, motorways, Airports –nonplaces. I injured my wrist at this time and had an operation where I had three months recuperating, unable to paint. It was this three month break from painting which led to the figurative work. When and if my hand got better I wanted to paint something that really meant something to me.

The Present, A future. Oil on Canvas,  25 x 30cms

Where is your current studio?

My wife and I have moved recently ( 2 years ago ) from Cork city in the South of Ireland to Kildare which is nearer to Dublin, and I paint in our living room. My wife’s an artist also so our home is more like an old school salon than a modern home.

How has your art training effected your work?

I went to art college when I was thirty six, graduating at forty. Doing that was a pivotal moment in my life. It gave me the confidence to pursue a career in art.

The Wall, Oil on canvas, 30 x 44cms

Family is very important to you, comment on how you combine them within your art.

Well, to be honest I don’t spend as much time with family as I would like. To be an artist one has to be selfish with ones’ time.

Can you expand on your work ‘For God’s Sake’?

For God’s Sake, 160 x 120cms

Yes, “For God’s Sake” is a large painting I completed in 2024. 120 x 160 cm. It consist of a group of men, carrying a huge cross in a coordinated effort to go nowhere. It’s a statement about work really. The men are so focused on the task, and the different characters are working at different levels of industry, some are getting their shoulders in under the cross while some are holding back hardly touching the cross. Also the title is ambigous depending on the emphasis of tone the viewer brings.  The subject matter came to me after I came across some photographs of a religious ceremony  carried out in Belgium in the forties. The reference image was not complete so I had to extend the cross and put in the figures on the left hand side carrying the foot of the cross.

It is almost as if you are taking us back in time.  Discuss

Yes I like to paint figures from the 1940s and 50s.

A Place for You, Oil on canvas, 50x 40cms

The clothes and hairstyles I feel are better for painting. Its easier to convey a mood, if there’s an element of nostalgia in the work, I find.

What is your main medium?

I generally use oil on canvas.

Bedrock, Oil on canvas, 120 x 135cms

What are you currently working on?

Well I’m in Copenhagen in Denmark at the moment, which I’m loving and I’m working on a body of work for a solo exhibition in October 2026 in Cork, Ireland. And whilst I’m here I am going to try and get some of my works into a gallery in Copenhagen.

Recently you have been in Turkey, has this influenced you?

No not really. Coming to Denmark has influenced me a lot more. I was here for a few months last year and lived at first out in the countryside. The flatness of the landscape, and the open skies and yellow wheat fields as well as the beaches had a very strong impact on me and gave me a whole new painting energy and a new route to follow and explore.

Discuss work you have done, within the home setting and work at the beach.

For the past ten years I’ve been working on a series of paintings with a working title of “Existing Realities”, a commentary, or my reflections on the relationship we have with work. When I arrived in Denmark in 2024 I had just completed a body of work for an exhibition in Waterford Ireland entitled “Give me my Meaning” Some of these paintings were based on interiors and were quite somber in mood and tone.

Last Summer Days, Oil on canvas, 50 x 40cms

Having arrived in Denmark I was influenced by the flat landscapes and the open skies. I then moved to a town by the sea in northern Zealand and could not stop painting the landscapes there. It was a holiday from the work of painting about work. If that makes sense.

What are your thoughts on art and philanthropy working together.  

Obviously philanthropy is important if not vital for the arts. If there was no financial support from philanthropists then the cultural centres would not survive.  Also for us artists, financial support is vital to continue making the work, so every purchase could be seen as a philanthropic act.

Contact

Diarmuid Breen

www.diarmuidbreen.com

Instagram: diarmuidbreenart

Deborah Blakeley, Melbourne, Australia

Interview by Deborah Blakeley, January 2026

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