While I have always been inspired by architecture and its multi-dimensional portrayal of form, the inspiration for my work is multifaceted and includes architecture, space, memory and emotion.
My sculptures are exquisitely crafted in porcelain. I work exclusively with porcelain as the intrinsic characteristics of the material, its translucence and delicate paper-like quality enable me to fully realise my concepts. I make miniscule environments- abstracted rooms, cities and houses.
My work represents a relationship with space and how it shapes us, both physically and emotionally. It also investigates the interrelationships between us and the buildings we inhabit. The structures I make connect these ideas and in doing so, they reflect on the human condition.
I aim to pique the viewer’s curiosity, inviting them to look beyond the surface where they may discover intimate spaces that are, at first glance, hidden from view. The fundamental basis of my work is drawn from my life journey; ultimately it encompasses my personal interactions, experiences and observations.
Liz O’ Brien Gallery, New York
RUUP & Form, London
SO Fine Art, Dublin
Gallery Zozimus, Dublin
O’ Connell Gallery, Clonakilty, Cork
Gallery 1608, Bushmills
Cahir Arts, Cahir, Tipperary
Sliding Rocks, Galway
Isobel Egan is a ceramic artist living and working in county Kildare, Ireland.
Isobel graduated in 2005 with a Masters of Arts, Design, Ceramics from the National College of Art and Design, Dublin.
She has received numerous awards for her work including the Taylor Art Award from the Royal Dublin Society in 1999, the Golden Fleece Award (merit) in 2006 and the Visual Art Bursary Award, from Kildare County Council in 2014.
Isobel represented Ireland at the European Ceramics Context in Bornholm, Denmark 2006 and 2018.
Her work is in several permanent collections including the National Museum of Ireland, Dublin and the Taipei County Yingge Ceramics Museum, Taiwan.
Isobel was nominated as an ‘Irish Craft Hero’ in 2022.
I work exclusively with porcelain as the intrinsic characteristics of the material, its translucence and delicate paper-like quality enable me to fully realise my concepts.
Porcelain Dreams, Ruup & Form, London Craft Week, London
Salon Art & Design, New York, Liz O’ Brien Gallery, curated by Stephen O’Connell
Land Marks, Ceramics Ireland, International Ceramics Festival, Argilla, Faenza, Italy
Ceramic Art London (Online Exhibition)
Maison et Objet, Paris, Design Ireland, Design & Crafts Council of Ireland
European Ceramic Context, Bornholm Denmark, Represented Ireland
Aqua Art Miami, Alessandro Berni Gallery, New York
Ceramic Art London, London, UK
European Ceramic Context, Bornholm Denmark, Represented Ireland
Korero, Ceramics in Conversation, Taiwan Ceramics Biennale, Taipei County Yingge Ceramics Museum, Taiwan
The fundamental basis of my work is drawn from my life journey; ultimately it encompasses my personal interactions, experiences and observations.
Galerie Magazine.com Liz O’Brien & Brian-McCarthy at Salon Design, New York
Irish Arts Review, Portfolio Section
CBC Radio Podcast, Room with a view: 60 years on, Gaston Bachelard’s Ideas still ignite our imagination
‘Irish Craft Heroes’ Published by Design & Crafts Council of Ireland
Pod Cast www.talesofaredclayrambler.com Isobel Egan, Building with paper-thin slabs
Ceramics Ireland, 40th Anniversary Book
Irish Arts Review
Ceramic Review, Memories & Materials, Frances Mc Donald
Ceramics Art and Perception, Inside Outside, by Dr. Audrey Whitty
The Gloss Interiors, Irish Times, by Susan Zelouf
Cfile, Market Place Selections from Ceramic Art London, Aesthetica Magazine
Ceramics Ireland, An Interior Perspective a Window into Light, Muireann Charleton
In Good Hands, RTE, six-part Contemporary Documentary, Episode 6, Ceramics
The Irish Times Magazine, Artists at Clay, 28th May
Ceramics Monthly “Korero: Ceramics in Conversation, the 2010 Taiwan Ceramics Biennale.” Professor Glen R. Brown
New Ceramics, The European Ceramics Magazine
Korero Ceramics in Conversation, 2010 Taiwan Ceramics Biennale
Contemporary Ceramics: An International Perspective by Emmanuel Cooper. Published by Thames and Hudson, London
Breaking the Mould, Published by Black Dog Publishing, London. Ceramics Ireland, Issue
The Irish Art Review, Autumn Volume 23. No.3 pages 122-124
Design & Crafts Council of Ireland
Visual Artists Ireland
Ceramics Ireland
Crafts Potters Association, Associate Member
Art Axis International
Teaching Council of Ireland
Kildare Craft Cluster
Irish Wings Festival, Christophe Boico Gallery, Paxos, Greece
Edges, Ceramic House, Brighton UK
O’Connell Gallery, Clonakilty, Cork
Land Marks, Ceramics Ireland, National Craft Gallery Kilkenny
Made in Ireland, National Craft Gallery Kilkenny, National Craft Gallery Kilkenny & FE Mc William Gallery
Irish Craft Heroes, a travelling exhibition throughout Ireland
Curious Treasures, The National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny
Ceramics Ireland Triennial Exhibition, Land/Marks, Farmleigh Gallery
Ceramics Ireland International Festival, Kilkenny, Exhibition
Whiter Shade of Pale, Hexagon Design Classics, North Road, London
Touchstone, Ceramics Ireland, Farmleigh Gallery & The National Craft Gallery
The Shadow of Sodeisha, National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks
SO Fine Art Gallery, Dublin
The Story in Art, Candida Stevens Fine Art, West Sussex, UK
Bils & Rye Gallery, York, UK
Contemporary Collection of Design & Craft, National Museum of Ireland & Design and Crafts Council of Ireland, Dublin
Inside Outside, Solo Exhibition Gallery Zozimus, Dublin
Duality of Function, Contemporary Clay, Galway Arts Centre, Galway
Portfolio at Solomon Fine Arts & Design & Crafts Council of Ireland, Dublin
Riverbank Arts Centre, Visual Arts Bursary Award Solo Exhibition, Kildare
Centred, Ceramics Ireland, Farmleigh Gallery, Dublin
Generation Exhibition, NCAD, Dublin
Moving Objects, International Academy of Ceramics, Dublin Castle, Dublin
Irish Craft Portfolio, Design & Crafts Council of Ireland, RHA Gallery, Dublin
Eigse, VISUAL Centre of Contemporary Art, Carlow, Ireland
Dearc, Celebrating 150 Years of the RDS Taylor Art Award, RDS, Dublin, Ireland
Korero, Ceramics in Conversation, Taiwan Ceramics Biennale, Taipei County Yingge Ceramics Museum, Taiwan
Visual Arts Grant, Kildare County Council and Arts Services
Nominated as an ‘Irish Craft Hero’ Design and Crafts Council of Ireland
Ceramics Ireland Award for Craftsmanship & Creativity & Gallery Zozimus Purchase Award
European Ceramic Context, Denmark, Represented Ireland
Visual Arts Bursary and Solo Exhibition, Kildare County Council and Arts Services
Visual Arts Bursary, Kildare County Council and Arts Services
Korero, Ceramics in Conversation, Taiwan Ceramics Biennale, Taipei County Yingge Ceramics Museum, Taiwan
The European Ceramic Context Exhibition, Bornholm, Denmark, Represented Ireland
The Golden Fleece Award, Merit
The Taylor Art Award, Royal Dublin Society
The Morrison Hotel, Dublin, Ireland
O’ Dwyer Real Estate, Dublin, Ireland
Private Collections Nationally & Internationally and 2016 to Present
The National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Dublin, Ireland
Taipei County Yingge Ceramics Museum, Taiwan
The National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Dublin, Ireland
Masters in Art, Design, Ceramics, National College of Art and Design, Dublin
The National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, Dublin, Ireland
