'Hang it in the Louvre' - the artist living her dream

"Hang it in the Louvre" is a well-known turn of phrase, but for one Newry woman it is about to become a reality.

Clíodhna Doherty, an abstract figurative artist, will showcase her art piece Laura in the world-famous Louvre Museum in Paris.

The piece will be displayed as part of a fair over the weekend.

Clíodhna has travelled to Paris with her parents for the event and said it will be "a fantastic family moment" when they see her work on display.

The Art Shopping fair, which runs from 18-20 October, is attended by collectors and those looking to invest in art.

"They're able to discover emerging artists and older artists, people at all different stages in their career," Clíodhna said.

"So hopefully I will sell [the piece] today."

Having quit her job and embraced a career as a full-time artist just four years ago, the 29-year-old said the experience would top off a whirlwind year which has included showcases in Venice and Cannes.

"It's a bit bonkers" the artist said, but when PAX Gallery in Austria reached out “it was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down".

“I thought it was a scam first. I thought it was a wee bit too good to be true, but it turned out to be legit and here we are," she said.

Breaking into the European art world has been a dream come true for the artist, who wants to carve out her own unique path in the industry.

The Louvre has added significance for her as it houses arguably the world’s most famous painting, the Mona Lisa.

“[Leonardo] Da Vinci is a huge inspiration for me," she said.

“The Mona Lisa captures a woman both how she wanted to be perceived and how he perceived her and that’s kind of a thing I try to do in my own work as well but more abstract."

The south Armagh woman painted Laura in 2022 as part of her Intimacy collection.

She put a call out on social media asking for women to send her nude photos of themselves.

Over 136 females from across Ireland sent photos, which she then narrowed down to the 30 painted in the collection.

"It’s really heart-warming for me that women across Ireland have trusted me with those images and that I'm able to make them look and feel beautiful," Clíodhna said.

"It’s a really nice feeling to say: 'I painted you, now it’s in the Louvre.'"

The story behind each woman was very important, she added.

She described Laura as a confident young woman, portraying the comfort experienced when a woman is alone for five or 10 minutes before bed or when they get out of the shower.

She said she wanted to encourage women to see themselves in her intimate paintings and be proud of their bodies in a non-sexualised way.

The artist said that in a world where STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects were often focused on, there was a “stigma that artists don’t make money... there is that mental block”.

But she added that social media had played a key role in allowing her to live her artistic dream.

“It’s definitely changed for the better, especially for emerging women artists who only represent 2% within the art world," she said.

“There is more exposure for women because of social media."

Having initially completed a degree in animation and design with a dream of working for Disney, Ms Doherty originally started working in graphic design.

But the Covid-19 pandemic proved a spur to pursue a career in art.

“My grandad died during Covid-19 and he had been really pushing me to pursue fine art," she said.

“I realised life is way too short, and I just said 'sod it' and quit my job and never looked back."