A Fly’s Perspective of Loss presents a series of paintings that portray a journey of introspection. The work reflects on the artist’s exploration of their emotional psyche under the guidance of a psychoanalytic therapist over the span of a year to resolve issues of separation, belonging and connection. The personification of clothing is a tool designed within their therapy sessions to distance the artist’s self from the issues they are dealing with in the hope to gain valuable insight. Viewers are invited to be ‘a fly on the wall’ and engage with the artist’s therapeutic process and inner dialogues.

Ruckenfigur is a compositional device used in painting; by depicting the figure from behind, the artist invites the viewer to self-identify with the scene. Doyle’s bodily arrangement of clothing is an inventive engagement with this method and conveys a similar sense of longing and existential consideration that is associated with the tradition.The work exposes the monotony of mental health challenges and the safe spaces in which they are often worked through. Accompanying the imagery are handwritten texts that hang from the wall on tracing paper which narrates the artist’s subconscious. The writing provides insight into the specific issues manifested on canvas as well as revealing the mental state of the artist at the time.

This body of work departs from Doyle’s usual motif of the figure. Avoiding representational methods of self portraiture, they embrace a different approach that incorporates text and an intimate scale to capture moments of self reflection.

Stephen Doyle is a member of Backwater Studios and graduate of Crawford College of Art and Design (2017). They are the recipient of two international art prizes ‘Ashurst Emerging Artist Prize’ & ‘Sunny Art Prize’. Their work was acquired by Crawford Art Gallery making it the first piece in the National Collection to discuss transgender/queer identity.

They have had multiple solo exhibitions in Lavit Gallery (2018), SO Fine Art Editions (2018), Ashurst Emerging Artist Gallery (2019) Triskel Arts Centre (2020) Kilkenny Arts Festival (2022) to name a few. As well as being selected for prestigious group exhibitions such as the Zurich Portrait Prize, NGI (2018) Queer As You Are, Luan Gallery (2021) GENERATION 22 – New Irish Painting, Butler Gallery (2022) and The Trinity Buoy Wharf Drawing Prize, London (2022).

Doyle has been granted the Visual Art Bursary Award (2020) by the Arts Council of Ireland, commissioned by the Glucksman Gallery, included in the Art History syllabus for the Leaving Cert and added to the peer panel for the Arts Council of Ireland. Most recently they were awarded the Cork City Arts Council Individual Bursary (2022/2024). Their next exhibition will be a dual exhibition with Peter Bradley at the Highlanes Gallery in June 2025.