artist’s statement
My artistic practice is an investigation into the world of shapes and colours. Through the medium of paint I develop layered and textured compositions that celebrate basic forms. Whether creating arrays of geometric shapes or highlighting a single object, I approach each painting as an opportunity to explore the dynamics of how shapes and colours interact one against another. In particular, I am attracted to the contrast I am able to achieve by juxtaposing bright, fluorescent acrylics with their plastic-like nature against the more earthy tones and thick textures achieved with oils, cold wax and sand.
While my work is predominantly abstract, I do occasionally draw and paint from representation in an effort to study objects and scenes that capture my attention and have something to teach me about colour and form. As I am lucky enough to live in the seaside village of Howth, I find inspiration in the organic forms of the seascape and the garden, while visits to my native New York fill my mind with sharper angles and intricate lines of architecture. Similarly, my practice of sketching everyday objects in my house has found its way into paintings of ‘Objects on Tables,’ a current series of minimalist paintings exploring basic shapes in three dimensions.
Through this recent series and in all of my work I am compelled by the challenge of how to take a familiar item such as a box seen many times a day, and through texture, transparency, and playful adjustments colour, line and form, transform it into something new and unexpected. In this way I hope to capture and communicate a little bit of the mystery of ordinary life.
about the artist
Naomi Taitz Duffy was born and raised in the Bronx, New York. She worked as a graphic designer and primary school teacher in New York and Washington DC before relocating to Ireland with her husband and two children in 2017. She currently resides in Dublin where she paints from her home studio in the seaside village of Howth.
Naomi’s paintings have been exhibited in Ireland and the United States and are held in private collections internationally.
exhibitions
2024 194th Royal Hibernian Academy Annual Exhibition, Dublin
Art at the House Spring Exhibition, The House, Howth, Dublin
2023 193rd Royal Hibernian Academy Annual Exhibition, Dublin
Taylor Galleries Summer Group Exhibition, Dublin
Ardgillan Gallery Winter Exhibition, Balbriggan, Dublin
Art at the House Spring and Winter Exhibitions, The House, Howth, Dublin
2022 192nd Royal Hibernian Academy Annual Exhibition, Dublin
Taylor Galleries Summer and Winter Group Exhibitions, Dublin
Art at the House Spring and Winter Exhibitions, The House, Howth, Dublin
2021 191st Annual Exhibition, Royal Hibernian Academy, Dublin
Graphic Studio Gallery Winter Group Exhibition, Graphic Studio Gallery, Dublin
Art at the House Winter Exhibitions, The House, Howth, Dublin
2016 After Words, Solo Exhibition, Four Season’s Eno Wine Rooms, Washington DC
Art of the Northeast, Silvermine Gallery, New Canaan, Connecticut
Unframed, West Annapolis Artworks, Annapolis, Maryland
Foundry Gallery Winter Group Exhibition, Washington DC
2015 First Second, Solo Exhibition, Foundry Gallery Solo Exhibition, Washington DC
Small Works, Capitol Hill Art League, Washington DC
Foundry Gallery Winter Group Exhibition, Washington DC
Nine Squares, West Annapolis Artworks, Annapolis, Maryland
2014 Fireworks, Foundry Gallery, Washington DC
Seven Variations, Gallery B, Bethesda, Maryland
awards and residencies
2021 Fingal County Council and Graphic Studio Dublin Fine Art Print Residency Award
2016 The Mart Gallery Dublin International Artist-In-Residence Award
collections
2021 Fingal County Council Municipal Art Collection, Ireland
publications
2022 Sunday Independent, ‘My Favourite Room’, October
2016 Create! Magazine, Featured Online Artist, December
2016 Captiol Hill Art League Beyond the Walls, Featured Artist, June
2016 Dublin Inquirer, Square in the Circle – Curious About, Interview, March 8
2016 Sunday Independent, The Art of Seduction, February 22
2015 Fresh Paint Magazine, Juror Daniel Krysa, Edition 10, p 28-29
collectives
At Home Studios Artists Collective, Dublin, Ireland
Visual Artists Ireland, Dublin, Ireland
education
2004 Masters of Science in Education, Bank Street College of Education, New York
2000 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Visual Communications, Washington University in St. Louis