Fidelma Massey at Gallery Zozimus
By admin	 On Apr 3, 2017
Fidelma Massey has been making sculpture for over 30 years. Many people will know her work from Sculpture in Context, Bloom, and the R.H.A. She has shown in most of the big group shows over the years, and consistently in many galleries during that time. Now she brings her first solo Dublin show – entitled 'Images for the Little Gods' – to Gallery Zozimus from 27 April to 14 May.
Massey makes detailed, precise, graceful sculptures, in ceramic and bronze, as well as drawings and prints. Her forms are witty, wildly imaginative, often humorous, and always engage the emotions. She has had solo shows in the Greenlane Gallery in Kerry, where she is well known, and many two and three person shows. The most recent of these was 'The Storytellers' in the Chapel Gallery, Lancashire in 2014. She has also shown in France, Italy and Germany, and her work is in many private collections.
At present, she is working on ceramics for the show in April, including 'Cherub' which she says is more owl than angel and 'Leafwing' which is described as a springtime figure. There are three more works in the making at the moment and there will possibly be a fourth included in the show.
Most of the bronze work is finished and there are some fascinating works included. These include 'Melusine' is a figure from Breton folklore. She is a feminine spirit of fresh water and is usually depicted as a woman who is a serpent or fish from the waist down (much like a mermaid). This one is asleep and dreaming. 'Birdbeast' and 'Striding Birdbeast' are two of the quirkier pieces in the show, and there is certainly a suggestion of little demon about them. Massey says of these pieces: "I think they might be about me. Perhaps about a certain frustration in not quite being able to fly (those wings would need to grow a bit more) and having to walk instead."
'The Fearless Child' was originally made as a proposal for a much larger sculpture for a school. Massey says of this piece: "Ravens have a reputation for intelligence in folklore, and in this piece they are speaking to the child, giving her their wisdom. She holds an egg, which for me always means the unknown, something potential but not yet manifest."
This thought-provoking show promises to be an amazing experience and Massey has more reason than most to be excited about her first solo Dublin show. "This Solo show in Gallery Zozimus is the highlight of my year," she says. "After my upcoming marriage which will take place just before the show."
So there's exciting times ahead for this wonderfully talented artist. What better way to share in that excitement than by taking a trip to Gallery Zozimus to marvel at the 'Images for the Little Gods'.
www.galleryzozimus.ie
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