Danny F. Kelly is a young artist from Dublin. At 19, he has chosen abstract art as his form of expression.

He first exhibited this year in January at Monster Truck studios and gallery on Francis Street and has just finished an exhibition at the Dame Street Gallery.

Six untitled works were exhibited as his first statement to the public. They are all executed in oil paint on large, nearly-square canvases. These are the simple tools he uses to create what he hopes are ‘potent and profound’ pieces of abstract art.

He rents a studio in Dublin 1, and he explained to me how he realises a painting and how it affects the viewer.

There are three first elements of each picture: The plane or canvas, the first mark he makes, and the mark as it is on the canvas.

To this he will keep adding graphical elements until it ‘makes sense’ and the picture is complete. During the process he says, laws transpire, and he solves each problem by adding more paint in order to balance the equation and tie up all the loose ends before the painting can be finished.

In this way, he hopes, each painting is a collection of marks where there is no focal point and nothing is dominant. The whole painting consists of a juxtaposition of diverse elements with its own essence and its own autonomous reality. This helps the viewer.

By attempting to make it crystal clear, the viewer can enjoy the coherence of the painting. Danny distinguishes two responses in the viewer: appreciation of the work itself for itself, and the possibility of self-reflection.

Art can lead us to be able to relate to our own life events, which he calls our emotive past, and at the same time also reminds us of our spiritual past and any profound experiences. This is pure abstract art which hopes to connect the reality of the expression with the viewer’s reality.
His works have atmosphere and power, and deserve a sustained look as all of the properties of the painting have to register for the full effect.

Danny’s style is rooted in the twentieth century, the modern period in the 40s and 50s. He likes the American artist Mark Rothko, and Irish contemporary artists like Felim Egan and Sean Scully. He is consistently working, and will be showing as soon as his work comes to fruition as he “does not want to conceal his progress.”

Watch out on recirca.com, the Irish art magazine Circa’s website for upcoming exhibitions or you can look at works from his current exhibition at www.damestreetgallery.com

Above: Untitled.