Christopher Byrne
bio
I view my work as relics and fragments of exploration. I’m interested in examining how structures and places were viewed or used in the past, how they have changed over time, and now, how we see them today. My work doesn't follow a linear pattern. It is an interlinking process, with each style of work informing the others. Each piece is an exploration, whether that’s through painting, etching, drawing, film, photography or screen printing.
With family ties to the Outer Hebrides, Scotland, my knowledge of the landscape came not only from how I saw it, but from stories passed down from generation to generation. The landscape spoke for itself, and allowed me to interrogate building typology and context through the remnants of crofts and crofted lands.
When studying in Glasgow, I saw this to be true across Scotland. And Glasgow’s Clydeside’s industrial remnants are also a great inspiration. My work considers these contemporary ruins and sparsely populated areas; from the aesthetics of decay to the reclaiming of the space by culture and nature. I invite the viewer to explore these areas through my aesthetic vision. My hope is to promote the importance of these areas as it feels as though they have become forgotten.
Education
BA (Honours) Fine Art: Painting and Printmaking, The Glasgow School of Art, 2011-2015
Notable Exhibitions:
Christopher Byrne at The Brick Lane Gallery, The Brick Lane Gallery, London, 2020
The Room, An Talla Solais, Ullapool, 2019
The Beatson Charity Exhibition, The Vacant Space, Glasgow, 2019
The Studio Fine Art Company Exhibit, The Vacant Space, Glasgow, 2019
Edinburgh's Hogmanay, Year of the Young People, Underbelly, Royal Mile, Edinburgh, 2018
Imprint, The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool, 2018
Christopher Byrne at Skypark, Skypark, Glasgow, 2017 (Solo Exhibition)
Art for Erskine, The Lighthouse, Glasgow, 2017
Christopher Byrne at the Backdoor Gallery, Backdoor Gallery, Dalmuir, 2017 (Solo Exhibition)
Aon Art Community Awards, The Leadenhall building, London, 2015- 2016
Art and Diamonds Exhibition, The House for an Art Lover, Glasgow, 2015
All You Can Eat, Graduate show at the Old Truman Brewery, London, 2015
Glasgow School of Art Degree Show, Tontine building, Glasgow, 2015
I am [///] for you, Fleming House, Glasgow, 2014
An exercise in Pressure, Mackintosh Building, Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, 2013
National Drawing Competition of Scotland, Paisley Art Institute, Paisley Museum, 2011
Media Publications
Metro Newspaper, "Wickermen Weave their way up the Royal Mile", Year of the Young People, Edinburgh's Hogmanay '18, December 2018
Sky Arts Landscape Artist of the Year 2018
Sky Arts Landscape Artist of the Year 2017
Art Mag UK, "The Ceilidh Place Exhibition", May 2018
The List, "Chris Byrne: Glasgow's Past", September 2017
The Evening Times, "Art in The Sky", September 2017
Departure Zine, "Scene 1", November 2016
Publication, The De-Industrialised Landscape of Glasgow's Clydeside and the effects of time", June 2015
