15 Questions with... Anne Ryan

‍This series aims to showcase the varying approaches creatives take to making art and how their relationships to the so-called art world differ, but also reveal what unifies those responsible for the art we love.

Anne Ryan is a Limerick-born artist known for her “cutouts” – three-dimensional works made from card, collage, canvas, ceramic and metal. These cutouts are exercises in perceptual permutation in which motifs and iconography from music, cinema, classical painting, ancient murals, and mythology all collide in dreamlike chaos. 

Ryan studied at Limerick School of Art and Birmingham University and was an Abbey Fellow in Painting at the British School at Rome in 2016. She now lives and works in London. Ryan has exhibited internationally, including presentations at Turner Contemporary, Margate, Hastings Contemporary, Ribot Gallery in Milan, and the Royal Academy of Arts, London. 

Last month, she opened a new exhibition entitled Folkmoot at the London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE. Installed above the ancient Roman Temple of Mithras, the commission responds directly to this significant archaeological site, still unknown to most. The show comprises sculpture, painting and frieze, reflecting themes of ritual, exchange and transformation throughout the city, and is on view through January 2027.

1. What is your earliest memory of a work of art?

When I was young in Limerick, about 7 years old, there was a priest, Fr. Angus Buckley, who was a noted painter. He would have all the kids from our area helping in his studio. My sister and I loved it and would assist with his watercolours and plans for commissions. He introduced us to a wonderful and different world.

When I was on Foundation, there was an exhibition by Sidney Nolan, the Australian painter, at the Belltable in Limerick, which completely changed the way I thought about painting.

2. Where do you turn to when you're in need of inspiration?

I walk and read a lot. The books I read might have nothing to do with what I’m working on, like crime fiction, for example, I just get lost in another world.

3. Who is your favourite artist?

There are lots and lots, and the favourite changes. When I was young, it was El Greco, because there was a painting of his in the National Gallery in Dublin that really moved me. For a while, artists like Philip Guston were very important. Right now, if I have to pick one, I would say the German artist Rosemarie Trockel.

4. What's the biggest crime an artist can commit?

Keep painting when they have no ideas in their head. Just production for the sake of it or obligation. Take a break instead and refuel.

5. Which gallery or museum should everyone try to visit at least once in their life?

I have to say, the Prado in Madrid. It’s magnificent.

‍6. What is the worst thing about the art world?

Studios disappearing from city centres due to property prices. Artists need to be in the centre of the cities, among life. It’s important for everyone.

‍7. Whose opinions on art do you actually care about?

I talk to very few people about what I do. Just a few close friends and my husband, who is also an artist. We talk about making and painting a lot.

8. What trend in art makes you roll your eyes?

Manufactured angst.

9. Who are the last three musical artists you listened to?

The Runaways, Osees and Le Tigre

10. What's your favourite colour and why?

Red, because North London is red.

11. How much does Ireland or your heritage influence your work?

A lot. Being an immigrant, it’s important to remember who you are and where you are from, the things that shaped you. When I first came over, it was not easy to move back and forth, a lot of Irish immigrants felt a terrible loss and longing for home. But now there is a whole generation in the UK who have strong connections to Ireland, making positive links between the two countries.

12. Is there an artistic skill you wish you were better at?

I’d like to improve my one-finger piano playing to at least two fingers.

13. What can you tell us about your show Folkmoot that's currently on view at London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE?

It’s a show about the oldest part of the city of London. Moving through space and time. The people, the different histories, all colliding.

14. Which piece in the show took the longest to perfect and why?

The paintings were made throughout, building the surfaces, leaving them to sit for a while. Then I really focused on pulling them together during the last month before the show.

15. What impression do you hope people get after seeing your show?

I want them to leave and look at the city differently. Walk, and really look. See some of the things back out there in the city. Don’t just pass through, but look and engage.

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Folkmoot is on at London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE until 09 Jan 2027.

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