Cloughjordan artist exhibits at Nenagh Arts Centre
Nenagh Arts Centre will host the debut solo exhibition of Helen Costello’s ‘Seen Unseen’ from May 2 to May 29 2023. The exhibition will be launched by Charlie and Carol Swan at 6pm on Tuesday May 2. Costello’s stoneware sculptures depict the daily behaviours and interactions of farm animals and wildlife that surround us, captured in clay.
Costello spent her life in agriculture, primarily with cows and horses, inspiring her sculptural work. ‘Seen Unseen’ is a body of work produced to allow the viewer to discover the beauty in the similarities and differences of farm animals and wildlife. The exhibition showcases the bond between animals and the unspoken language that they share.
In her sculptures, the observer can see the intimate touches of a cow and calf / mare and foal, the alert cocked head of a hare, and the passion of racehorses crossing the finish line. The unglazed colour of the fired clay highlights aspects of the pieces in a stone-like finish, creating a natural look that captures the essence of the animals.
Costello’s work has been inspired by a lifetime of working with animals. She spent her youth and working life on farms, observing the variety of animals and plants on the land. Her approach towards animals has been shaped by her time spent with her uncle in Kerry, milking cows, playing with the farm dog, and appreciating, examining, assessing and judging cows.
The exhibition is an opportunity to showcase Costello’s new passion for clay, developed at Limerick School of Art and Design, and to share her unique vision of the world. Her third year exhibition piece in 2018 received the Gallery Zozimus Purchase Award for most impact, and she has since exhibited at Sculpture in Context in the Botanical Gardens Glasnevin as well as many group exhibitions.
Costello has been inspired by a lifetime of working with animals, and she spent her youth and working life on farms. She attended Gurteen Agricultural College and after training in New Zealand spent 15 years, as an independent milking and mastitis consultant, advising dairy farmers all over Ireland, Wales, England, southwest Scotland, Hungary, France and Germany. She has also bred and shown prizewinning purebred Welsh ponies and reschooled problem horses.