PIGSY (Ciaran McCoy)

 

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*Irish Artist PIGSY
MediumMixed, Spray paint, acrylic, oil stick
StreetPIGSY Art Studio in Dublin City
CityDublin
Zip/Postal CodeD06YY76
CountryIreland
Websitehttps://pigsy.art/
Phone00353876623246

About the Artist

Born in Dublin, Ireland

Currently travelling and in Art Residency in Malaga, Spain

Ciarán McCoy - known by his artistic alter ego "PIGSY" - creates work that contrasts the disciplined structure of his architectural training with raw, intuitive creativity. As an architect and member of the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland, he uses his art as a diverging deconstruction process, delving deep into the human psyche. The artist name "PIGSY" is inspired by a character from the '80s TV show “Journey to the West” (Monkey Magic), a favorite from his childhood.

He is an artist that has overcome the stigma of dyslexia in academic learning and was raised in a traditional Catholic family, and attended an all-Irish language (Gaeilge) school. PIGSY’s art challenges the biases that shape our psychological mindset by exploring the process of discarding the unnecessary.

Fascinated by the complexities of the mind, PIGSY confronts the inner "beasts" that gnaw at his consciousness through gestural painting. Each stroke uncovers layers of emotion and thought, as he seeks to heal the inner scars left by life's experiences.

PIGSY's artistic practice directly opposes the calculated rigor of architecture, embracing unrestrained spontaneity and imperfection. He works with a variety of mediums, often incorporating discarded materials to challenge conventional paradigms and push the boundaries of traditional art. His work seeks to connect with viewers by exploring deeper aspects of self and society, encouraging reflection and personal insight.

“Many of my paintings are self portraits or semi-biographical, I paint about the things going on in my head at the time of painting. People have said to me that the paintings are angry but I don’t think they’re angry, I’m just expressing the frustrations of someone who lives with dyslexia. Words frustrate me and fascinate me at the same time. I sometimes don’t understand  the sounds of the letters, what they mean and why they don’t do what they are supposed to do. Because of this I like to draw quick and loose as opposed to when I’m designing a building and it needs to be more rigid and consistent. I’ve also taken from street artists who have to paint fast.  I think if you’re drawing fast there’s an honesty to it because there is no manipulation and overthinking, it’s just straight from your head onto the canvas. I love the no phoney approach to that”.

This spontaneous approach takes away all inhibitions. “I deliberately don’t correct words that have been misspelled and I sometimes break them apart to emphasize what can be going on in my head”. He also splashes and spills paint loosely over the canvas which keeps the honest approach “for a long time I covered up the writing completely, so as to not expose myself too much to the outside world but as I got older I’ve stopped doing that.  I’m happy where my art is, at the moment, and  I feel that it’s totally me. It’s a take it or  leave it approach, I have now.”

“Art is a way of expressing  myself and it’s a nice break from the normal day-to-day work  routine of an architect. The creative process between art and architecture are very different disciplines. With architecture I have specific briefs and goals that I aim to achieve. With art there are no boundaries, I just express what’s in my mind at the time that I am working, and in all honesty, I’m trying to get the thoughts out of my mind and on to the canvas.  I see it as a healthy process. Work and life can be stressful at times and I find going to my studio and throwing a large piece of canvas on the ground and painting helps me release all those stresses in a creative and positive way”.