Salvatore of Lucan | Me and my Nan’s hands | 2019 | Oil on Canvas | 70x100cm

The Arts Council has a proud tradition as part of Culture Night of showcasing a selection of exciting artworks recently added to the Arts Council Collection.
While this year it will not be possible to share these works in person with audiences on the night, we have decided to highlight the excellence and diversity of visual arts practice in Ireland today by inviting a few of the Collection’s most recently acquired artists to give some insight on their works.

For Culture Night 2020 works by artists Bárbara Wagner & Benjamin de Burca, Salvatore of Lucan, Áine Phillips and Doireann O’Malley will celebrate the Arts Council Collection’s continuing history of purchasing ambitious work that engages with and reflects contemporary Irish society.

Here, Salvatore of Lucan tells us more about his featured artwork, practice and what it means to have his artwork as part of the Arts Council Collection.

Explore this and more from the Arts Council Collection at https://www.instagram.com/artscouncilireland/ 

Me and my Nan’s hands is a painting of my Nan and I watching myself on TV. In 2019 I appeared in an RTÉ documentary. This was a huge source of pride to my Nanny.

Growing up, I always wanted to be on telly. In my house, the TV was regarded as a sort of sacred thing, and to appear on it would have been considered the height of success. As my younger self saw it, this meant entering into my living room from a position of power, the centre of attention. I particularly wanted to be on the Late Late Show.

Anyway, as the household sat and watched my image on the screen, my Nan’s hands lent over from her chair and landed on my right. I have a visceral memory of the feeling. I can’t describe it really, but perhaps a mixture of embarrassment and smugness. What was I embarrassed about? Did I feel I'd tried too hard? Was a small part in an RTÉ documentary my glass ceiling? It’s hard to know, but this is the stuff that I try to paint. Stuff that confounds me.

— Salvatore of Lucan

Since 1962, the Arts Council has been buying art from working artists. The Collection that evolved tells the story of modern and contemporary Irish visual art in a unique and fascinating way. Today the Collection continues to grow and its more than 1,100 paintings, sculptures and other works are on display in public spaces all over Ireland for people to experience and enjoy first hand. You can find out more at: www.artscouncil.emuseum.com