Mark Moynihan
10 Portraits

Mark Moynihan is a painter who utilizes the genre of portraiture to open up ideas about Identity. The degree of naturalism which he deploys provokes an almost immediate response from the viewer and simultaneously functions as an entry point for the work.

The ten portraits on display in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary were commissioned by Grampian Hospitals Art Trust and represent a small cross-section of the many individuals who have diverse and vital roles to play in the vast hospital community which serves the north east of Scotland.

A second exhibition at the Robert Gordon University (The Faculty of Health and Social Care, Level 2) will portray the same subjects with a different focus. By using a different painting technique Mark wants to depict the subjects in such a way that will reveal the individual behind the social identity.

                                           On one hand a portrait is supposed to represent a real,
                                           specific and unique individual. On the other, it must
                                           convey a person’s social and cultural status. Being a
                                           person doesn’t simply mean being a flesh and bone
                                           individual, it also means being a character on a cultural
                                           stage.
                                                                                                                                                Mark Moynihan 2007

Mark is a graduate of Gray’s School of Art and completed these portraits whilst undertaking postgraduate studies at the Prince’s Drawing School in London.

Following the exhibition the 10 portraits will become part of the permanent collection of Grampian Hospitals Art Trust, to be installed in the hospital for future generations.