Exhibition Program

Padraic Ryan

Lustre 2020

These works come from the artist’s obsession with the otherworldly nature of nocturnal life under incandescent streetlights. It started with 3am drives home from his studio, and the discovery of a complete colour change in the world touched by the brilliance of these streetlights. Purples in the shadows of trees, that did not belong there. A rich, warm orange tone painting everything the light reached. The disappointment felt when he would come across a blue- toned LED lamp that would whitewash away the magical colours. The paintings display simple scenes that many of us take for granted, a lustrous feeling that the night could live forever, and help transport you to that world; evoking a nostalgic feeling for all of the times we have wandered the streets at night, perhaps after a few lemonades.