Since our initial meeting in January 2014, I have been unfaithful to my Chris Wilson painting. Over the past year and a half, I have had multiple artists living as temporary guests in my home, and this is attributable to art swapping. A new way of exchanging art has arrived in Ireland, from across the pond. It involves creating a group of ten to twelve art-lovers, although this number can be easily changed. Each person sets aside money every month until they have each built up the hefty sum of €1000, or an alternative price. The plan is for each member of the group to purchase a painting or a sculpture, and then swap around every two months. At the end of almost two years, they would each have had ten different works of art in their respective homes, and their original purchase would then be returned to them.

A friend of my mother’s, Brenda Moran, got the idea of art swapping from an article in the Irish Times Gloss magazine Moving Pictures, which outlines how a group of Dublin women got together to share art. After this, Brenda decided to make a similar group with her friends. They met one of the founders of the group, Ann Sheppard, who explained to them that, 25 years ago, she had heard about an art-swapping group in New Zealand. Brenda detailed how Ann put her newly formed group on track, gave them a copy of the constitution, spoke to them about the pitfalls of the practice, and they dived in.

Due to my mother’s involvement, I got the chance to visit multiple art galleries.  On a crisp morning in January of this year, I wandered into the Doorway Gallery. Initially, I was captivated by Maria O’Sullivan, an up and coming artist from Cork. A combination of collage, acrylic, ink and charcoal came together on a large board. Her art combines elements of each city she is living in, such as the monuments and the streets.

Even as Maria pulled me into her labyrinth of cityscapes, my eyes scanned the room, and landed on the paintings of Chris Wilson. The monotones and hidden intricacies of each work of art drew me in. The little houses of each painting got lost in the vastness of the drooping rocks and darkened crevices. Looking closer, the amount of detail that had gone into each pencil sketching was simply remarkable. To reach this extraordinary effect, Wilson uses a process of layering. As Wilson describes: “These layers are created through pencil and graphite powder and over painted with a thin watery acrylic.” When I asked Wilson about his inspiration for his recent collection, he revealed that, “The landscape and the coastal edge, particularly the North and West coast provide the inspiration for the work and I also have a big interest in maps and geology.” In a manner that is in no way obvious, Wilson breaths a sense of the Irish landscape into his paintings. Over the next few weeks, my mother and I wandered around various art galleries in town, before gravitating back to the Doorway Gallery. We bought a Chris Wilson painting which hung on the wall of our family home for two months before moving on to another member of the group.

I have always had an appreciation for art, but I had never been afforded the luxury of owning a painting. I have pondered modern art in The Tate. I have happily loitered around The Mett before bracing the sweat of New York City. I have strolled down the Santa Barbara boardwalk and admired the local art, full of vibrant images depicting a candy-coloured California. The works of art that line the gates of Stephen’s Green often call my name, while I wish that my pockets were full of money to spend. Therein lies the problem for many people who wish to partake in the world of art buying: often, the funds are simply not available.  Art swapping provides a welcome solution to this common dilemma.

There is unrealised potential in this art swapping initiative, and it has  possibilities for growth in Ireland. Students could also get active and involved, albeit on a smaller budget. As an alternative, students could create their own piece of art, and exchange it around a group of over a period of one or two years. This doesn’t have to be limited to paintings, and could extend to sculptures, drawings, photographs, and written word creations. This could allow for students, or any other member of society, to engage with art and maintain ties with other adherents of their art club. Due to the group involvement, art swapping allows for a shared experience. Akin to going to an art gallery or exhibition with friends, the group participants share their appreciation for individual works of art, on a deeply personal level.

So far, all of the artists in my house have been Irish, and this provides another incentive to create or join an art swapping group. As Antonia Hart said in the Gloss, it is “a great way of supporting and meeting Irish artists.” While I have enjoyed my encounters with other artists, I am waiting with eager anticipation to have the Chris Wilson painting back in my home again.

Artwork by Chris Wilson.