Finding Inspiration on the Wild Coast of Connemara
The Call of the Coast
There’s a timeless beauty to the west coast of Ireland that never fails to draw me in. The air is crisp and salty, the sound of the waves like a slow, deep breath for the soul. Connemara is a place where land and sea intertwine, its beaches and hills a reminder to slow down, to notice, to feel.
Glassilliaun Beach in County Galway is one of those places. After five hours of winding roads from Cork Airport, I felt instantly at home — embraced by the quiet beauty of sand and sea, mist-cloaked mountains rising beyond.
The Space to Imagine
This is the kind of place where the wind can rise to 160 km/h (around 100 mph), making the very air hum. But not today. Today, the winds were soft, and I had the whole expanse of sand and sea to myself. Pure, unspoiled paradise — if you’re wrapped up warm in jumpers and windproof layers, that is, even at the height of summer.
Framing the Scene
I walked down to the shore every morning — three beaches in three days — falling into a slow, timeless rhythm. The hills rose steeply inland, deep and rich green, framed by mist-draped mountains that invite long hikes. But this trip, I stayed closer to the sand and water, letting the sound of the sea guide me.
Normally, I’d have paints and paper with me, capturing moments in the open air. This time, the wind and mist made that impractical, so I drew in the sand with a piece of driftwood — ephemeral sketches shaped by tides and footprints, reminding me how nature itself is always creating, reshaping, and erasing.
Drawing in the Sand
The west coast of Connemara has inspired me to start work on a new series of paintings — pieces shaped by its deep blues and soft greys, its luminous whites and mossy greens. I can still picture the turquoise shimmer of the sea by the shore when the sun broke through, the crisp, pale sand underfoot, and the textures of lichen, limpets, and mussels clinging to smooth purple and black rocks.
I haven’t yet brought these moments to canvas, but I’m mulling it all over, filling my sketchbooks and letting the ideas evolve slowly in the studio. In due course, I’ll announce a special preview of this new collection. In the meantime, if you’d like to be the first to hear when it’s ready, I’d love to invite you to sign up to my VIP list — a quiet space where I share new work and stories from the places that inspired it.
The Calm and Peace to Carry Home
If you’ve ever stood on a deserted beach like those in Connemara, you’ll understand. The silence is expansive. The wind and water whisper their secrets. The colours shift with the weather. It’s a place that reminds you to slow down, to notice, to breathe.
These moments — this deep sense of belonging — are what I hope to capture in every piece I create. My work is inspired by places like this, making space for serenity, reflection, and belonging.
If you’d like to invite a piece of this wild beauty into your own space, I’d be honoured for you to sign up to my VIP list and follow my progress. Together, we can carry a piece of nature with us, wherever we call home.
