The Dublin Art Book
I was thrilled to be asked to submit my Dublin-themed illustrations for an exciting new book celebrating my hometown and the artists who create in it. The Dublin Art Book is a collection of over 100 Dublin artworks by 55 Irish or Irish-based artists; all collected and edited by visual artist Emma Bennett. This is the fifth book in a series which takes a look at a city and how the artists living there visualise it. Each city book shows just how differently each artist depicts their beloved city and the diverse use of media they use to create their inspired images. It’s available in all good bookstores now - and it’s small in size too, so it looks incredibly cute!
I submitted my ‘Bumblebees & Blooms’ pink door illustration, and my whimsical Dublin townscape ‘My Fair City.’ Both pieces are filled with a a deep sense of where I’m from, and how much my city means to me.
As I’m an illustrator - and a devotedly daydreaming one at that! - I always like to re-imagine real places. And so, I illustrate them how I would love them to actually be like in real life. My pink door is surrounded by the most beautiful botanicals, with a doorstep one can only dream of. My Dublin scene is filled with lots of flowers and trees, and the most idiosyncratic buildings which only Dublin City possesses.
As a Dubliner who has seen my city grow from a dirty (but lovable) ‘aul town, to a supposedly modern high tech hub of opportunities, I am more and more finding myself illustrating a Dublin City that I wish was still in existence, and one which should have been. Dublin has lost a lot of her inimitable soul. Dublin has lost a lot of its Dubliners. Dublin artists have lost a lot of their creative spaces….and places to live. Therefore, losing myself in my imagination and re-imagining my city as a greener, liveable, slower-paced, and distinctive place is something that I love to do; and to share with others who may be longing for those things too. ~ Rachel x