The Arts Council and Aosdána express regret at the death of visual artist and Aosdána member Micky Donnelly.
Micky Donnelly was born in Belfast in 1952. He studied at the University of Ulster from 1976 to 1981 and received his BA and MA in Fine Art. Since then he exhibited paintings, drawings and installations in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Ireland, Britain, Europe, New Zealand, Japan, Mexico, Canada and America, and was included in a number of high-profile international survey exhibitions of Irish Art.
He received many awards and prizes, and spent time working in Italy, the USA, and New Zealand. He was a founder member of Circa art magazine and wrote about contemporary art for various publications. His work is included in many private and public art collections in Ireland, Europe, and the USA, including the Irish Museum of Modern Art, the Ulster Museum, the Arts Council of Ireland, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, the Arts Council of England, the British Council, and the European Parliament. He showed with the Fenderesky Gallery, Belfast, the Taylor Gallery, Dublin, and the Norman Villa Gallery, Galway.
He was elected a member of Aosdána in 1996.
Speaking about Micky Donnelly, fellow member of Aosdána Alice Maher, says:
“Micky Donnelly was a painter, writer and thinker, who was one of a group of dynamic artists who all emerged in 1980’s Belfast, putting Northern Irish visual art on the international map. His iconography contained elements of political satire, shot through with wry humour, and painted with brio. He taught at NCAD, GMIT, and many other colleges, where he was a generous and inspiring teacher. He exhibited nationally and internationally and his work is included in public and private collections including IMMA, the Ulster Museum, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the European Parliament.”