Moved by metal

TAKING IT ALL IN  Maximilian Stevens at the opening of ‘CRUX - A Dialogue in Metal’ at Custom House Studios Gallery. Pic: Conor McKeown

Custom House Studios exhibition showcases five metalsmiths’ artworks

‘CRUX – A Dialogue in Metal’, an exhibition of metalwork by artists Gunvor Anhøj, Michael Calnan, Moss Gaynor, John Hogan and Jane Murtagh is running at the Custom House Studios  until August 7.
The five artist metalsmiths have come together through a shared passion for their chosen material. They forge, etch, draw and open out metal into three-dimensional and two-dimensional works, combining contemporary practices with ancient techniques.
This exhibition illustrates the diversity of metal and showcase its myriad possibilities, from the delicate tracery of Jane Murtagh’s work, to the solid architectural forms of Moss Gaynor, to the subtle lines and sensual curves of the works produced by Michael Calnan, John Hogan and Gunver Anhøj.
Gaynor, a sculptor based in Clonakilty, West Cork, works primarily with ferrous and non-ferrous metals, often combining the base material with other media such as stone, wood and glass. It is the ever-changing dynamic of West Cork, where land meets sea meets sky, which provides an endless source of inspiration for his work. Whilst the natural world may be the catalyst, it is his interest in the man-made world of architecture and industrial design that informs much of the aesthetic of the finished piece.
Murtagh lives and works in Cratloe, Co Clare, who works with non-ferrous metals, combining contemporary practices and sensibilities with ancient techniques in metalworking – casting, repoussé, etching, patination and gilding. Man-made and natural features in the surrounding landscape have informed much of her recent work. She has a particular interest in developing a visual narrative around economic botany and 17th- and 18th-century cartographers and collectors.
Mayo artist John Hogan began his career in hand-forged ironwork and has since then developed a large portfolio of work, including large scale public sculptures and garden sculptures, as well as smaller wall sculptures. John’s work for this exhibition is an eclectic mix of contemporary forged pieces borne from an equally eclectic mix of inspirations.
Calnan is a contemporary blacksmith, working in partnership with his wife, Gunvor Anhøj, in a studio based on the grounds of Russborough House, Co Wicklow. The work he creates emanates a degree of simplicity and elegance irrespective of the mass and size of the material.
Anhøj was born in Denmark in 1973. From early childhood, she loved making and used to sit and carve wooden objects in the garden of her family home. For a living, she trained as a horticulturalist and was first introduced to iron when required to plough the fields the old way, using horses and a one-furrow plough. Following her intrigue with both the material and the tradition of the blacksmith, she then trained in at the Hereford College of Art and Design in England.