Is céimí í Leanne McLaughlin ar chlár Céime AB d’Ealaín Fheidhmeach Ollscoil Uladh. Tá a deilbh móra curtha ar taispeáint go náisiúnta agus go hidirnáisiúnta. Le cúpla bliain anuas, ghlac Leanne roinnt coimisiúin ardphróifíle ó Fhéile Ealaíon Mountshannon, Caisleán na Blarnan i gCorcaigh, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath, Cathair Cultúir-Doire agus na Gairdíní Luibheolaíochta Náisiúnta.
Oibríonn Leanne i meáin éagsúla lena n-áirítear cló, ola, saileach, bambú, dúch, miotal agus plaistigh. Tá a cuid oibre thar a bheith sainiúil, bunaidh agus mothúchánach tuisceanach
Leanne McLaughlin is a graduate of the University of Ulster's Fine and Applied Art AB Degree programme. Her large scale sculptures have been exhibited nationally and internationally. In the past few years, Leanne has taken on a number of high profile commissions from Mountshannon Arts Festival, Blarney Castle in Cork, University College Dublin, City of Culture-Derry and The National Botanic Gardens. Her first solo show 'FRACTURED' in the Saldanha Gallery, Fort Dunree was recieved with critical and public acclaim.
Leanne works in a variety of mediums including print, oil, willow, bamboo, ink, metal and plastics. Her work is highly distinctive, original and emotionally poignant.
"Odaisé Chré na nOileánach" Foirm chré mara, daite le líocha nádúrtha & aicrileach.
Le na glúnta, tá oileánaigh meallta ag an fharraige— faoi dhraíocht athraitheacha bhun na spéire agus a dúrúin seachantach. Cé go bhfuil siad fite fuaite le chéile, tá go leor fós do-thuigthe faoin dtonn. Léiríonn na h-odaiséis chré seo an coimhlint céanna: an fonn fánaíochta, fórsaí ársa, agus an doimhneacht gan teorainn. Cosúil le súile ar thóir seolta i gcéin, tosaíonn an turas seo sa talamh, ag gluaiseacht isteach sa doimhneas, agus ag pilleadh arís leis an cheist: cé muid i fhianaise na farraige?
"Islander Clay Odysseys" Marine unfurled clay forms, dyed with natural pigments and acrylic.
Islanders have long been drawn to the sea, captivated by its shifting horizons and elusive mysteries. Though they live in its embrace, much remains unknowable beneath the waves. These clay odysseys mirror that push-and-pull: the impulse to explore, the weight of ancient forces, and the scale of the ocean’s unknown. Like islanders scanning the surf for distant sail, this is a voyage that begins in the earth, drifts into the deep, and returns to question what it means to be defined by the sea.
Cosán na Páistí (fuaimdhreach an fhillte)
Saothar fuaimshuiteála is ea é seo a thugann ar ais muid go Inis Bó Finne, áit a dhruid scoil an oileáin go luath sna 1980idí agus cuireadh teaghlaigh i dtír ar an mhórthír. Trí ghlórtha pháistí, amhráin, agus cuimhní an mhúinteora deireanach, tagann an seanscoil ar ais chuige féin — an suaimhneas brste go séimh le cuimhne.
Leanann an suiteáil seo cosán na fille, ar ais go dtí an áit naofa foghlama seo, áit a raibh páistí an oileáin bailithe le chéile le léamh agus scríobh i gcroílár a gcultúr áitiúil.
Ar bhóithrín na scoile, seasann brídeoga beatha, déanta de réir nósanna traidisiúnta, mar thairiscintí ciúine — siombailí den chuimhne, den samhlaíocht agus den súgradh. Bhí siad ina lámha ag na páistí a d’imigh tráth; anois tá siad ina siombail den fhilleadh séimh.
Tá an píosa seo faoi dhíbirt, ach faoi athghabháil fosta. Músclaíonn sé mothúcháin saoirse, sábháilteachta agus muintearais — ag tabhairt ómóis don rud a cailleadh, agus don rud atá go fóill againn.
The children's path (a soundscape of return)
This work is a return through sound installation to Inish Bó Finne, where the Island’s school was closed in the early 1980s and families were relocated to the mainland. Through a soundscape of children’s voices, song, and the reflections of the last teacher, the abandoned school breathes once more, its silence gently broken by memory.
The installation traces a journey back to this sacred space of learning, where generations of island children once gathered to read, write, and belong.
Along the path to the school, traditional life-sized bridog dolls stand as quiet offerings—symbols of memory, imagination, and play. Once cradled by the children who left, they now mark a tender ritual of return.
This piece is about displacement, but also reclamation. It evokes freedom, safety, and belonging, honouring what was lost, and what is still held.
