Colin Martin
A word from our awardee ...
"Winning the RCSI Art Award was a recognition and support of my artistic practice. The combination of financial support in addition to a commission allowed me to make a distinct work for a specific context, creating new audiences and new ways of encountering the work." — Colin MartinColin Martin was awarded the 2020 RCSI Art Award for his work 'Model City (Blade Runner)' at the 190th RHA Annual Exhibition.
His commission for RCSI is titled 'Laboratory’, a detailed depiction of the empty surgical and clinical training laboratory in the National Surgical and Clinical Skills Centre in 26 York Street. 'Laboratory' reflects a broader interest in technology and spaces of research and development that is evident in Martin's wider artistic practice.
His work explores spaces that blur boundaries between the real and the virtual and where technology, culture and politics are synthesised. Undertaken during COVID-19, 'Laboratory' is in part a response to the pandemic, documenting the complexity of healthcare and education amid lockdowns and restrictions. The presence of people is felt in their absence and in what is left behind.
About the artist
Colin Martin is an artist and lecturer based in Dublin. He is currently Head of the Royal Hibernian Academy School. He is a graduate of TU Dublin and the National College of Art and Design. His current practice is concerned with the intersection of analogue painting with digital and technological cultures.
He has exhibited widely in Ireland and internationally and is a multiple recipient of the Arts Council Visual Arts Bursary. His work is held in public and private collections including the Arts Council, University College Cork, Office of Public Works, Fingal Arts and the RHA.
Martin was elected a full member of the RHA in 2008.