Caroline Canning speaks of the ‘connection between eye and hand’ which triggers off her paintings. It is this sense of connection that we feel in her works, not merely that initial connection between Caroline and her subject but, more importantly for us, the connection between artist and viewer. The enthusiasm she imbues into her paintings spills out into our space and infects us mightily. For a work of art to be successful its creator must be in it and of it. Caroline’s larger-than-life personality and head-on approach to life are all over her work. From her boldly colourful still-lifes, mostly executed amidst the “domestic jumble” which is her studio/kitchen, to the incredibly atmospheric landscapes which summon up the elemental forces of nature, we are bowled over by her tremendous joie de vivre. That she can contain within a space measuring a mere 3.25″ square dramatic electrically-charged cloudscapes full of Stürm und Drang certainly fills me with awe.
Sile Connaughton-Deeny, May 2012
3 Walls Gallery 