New works
On Sunday the 3rd of April 2011 Ai Wei Wei was detained in China.
My then seven year old Eloise prayed for him on a nightly basis (and still does). At the time we were learning how to
count in mandarin with hand gestures. In China you can count to ten on one hand, internationally you can communicate
effectively with one finger.
This piece is a homage to Ai Wei Wei whose art I had been following before my first visit to China.
Eloise takes some of the credit for Mr Wei Wei release 81 days later.
“After Ai Wei Wei” © John Roch Simons 2013
“Shredded Porn” © John Roch Simons 2013
I made this work as a comment on many of the aspects of pornography,
its journey, and the different ways it impacts on art, us and our society.
It documents the use of paper, pre internet, shredded into a box
(“Pandora’s box”) a comment in itself as well as the past.
New works
New works
2013
2014
“The hill - red” © John Roch Simons 2015
“Eze close to the edge” © John Roch Simons 2015
“The hill - white” © John Roch Simons 2015
“Coast” © John Roch Simons 2015
New Works
2015
“Cottage girl 2017 - a portrait after Gainsborough” © John Roch Simons 2017
“The Baths No 2 - arrival at a visual memory of youth”
© John Roch Simons 2017
Left: “The Cottage Girl” 1785 Thomas Gainsborough
Above: “on the Rest Flight into Egypt” 1647 Rembrandt
“Still no rest - after Rembrandt” © John Roch Simons 2017
“Girl in the shadow of the pixel - From the series - Kids of the Digital age”
by John Roch Simons to be exhibited at the 135th Royal Ulster Academy Annual Exhibition.
135th RHA Annual Exhibition
location Belfast
Dates 14th October - 8th January 2017
New Works
2016
“The two Johns - after Caravaggio” © John Roch Simons 2017
Attempting to convey a memory, visually or verbally to others is difficult. It is especially difficult if they have not experienced the original space and only see a rundown building with graffiti.
For years I have reminisced to my children about my days in the Bath’s in Dun Laoghaire, learning to swim. The Baths resonate with me, with very strong memories of my youth.
“The Baths No 1 - arrival at a visual memory of youth”
© John Roch Simons 2017
“The Baths No 3 - arrival at a visual
memory of youth”
© John Roch Simons 2017
“The Baths No 3 - arrival at a visual
memory of youth”
© John Roch Simons 2017
New works
2017
The Municipal Gallery, dlr LexIcon, Dún Laoghaire announced an open call for an exhibition “Arrival”, judged and curated by Gemma Tipton, journalist, writer and critic of contemporary art and architecture.
I decided to use the opportunity to reconcile some photographic work that would reflect what my words had failed to explain to my children.
These are some of the results in the series “The Baths”