Deirdre O’Mahony (b. 1956) has sustained an artistic practice spanning more than thirty years, encompassing sculpture, painting, installations, and participatory projects. At the heart of her work lies the relationship between people and landscape, with particular attention to the political dimensions of agriculture and the tension between forgotten knowledge and modern farming methods. These themes form the basis of her long-term, research-driven projects on farming and food security, such as Sustainment Experiments (2020–2023), SPUD (2009–2019), and X-PO (ongoing since 2007). Her work The Quickening, featured in the exhibition Grensverleggers, was commissioned in 2024 by the Douglas Hyde Gallery of Contemporary Art in Dublin.
O’Mahony studied at St Martins School of Art in London and Crawford College in Cork, and received her PhD from the University of Brighton in 2012. She has been awarded various prizes and grants from, among others, the Arts Council of Ireland, and has taken part in residencies both in Ireland and internationally. She also received a prestigious Pollock-Krasner Fellowship. Her work is part of the national art collection of Ireland and of the Irish Museum of Modern Art. Deirdre lives and works in Cork, Ireland.
