Programs
Aisling McdonaldMonday, Jan 13th, 2025
5:30 PM - 7:00 PM Held at the
Lakeshore Women's Club 2352 Lakeshore Blvd. Jacksonville FL 32210 |
You're invited to a captivating artist presentation by Aisling McDonald! Join us as she shares her journey and insights into her incredible work with metals, transforming them into stunning outdoor art that enhances public spaces. Aisling's smaller-scale creations for indoor settings are equally mesmerizing, showcasing her versatility and creativity.
In addition to her artistic practice, Aisling is also a dedicated educator, sharing her skills and passion for art with others. Don't miss this opportunity to be inspired by her unique approach and the stories behind her work. |
Registration is Closed
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Please join us for the our Novembeer meeting to enjoy artistic networking with food, conversation, and wine. Please Register by JAN 8th, 2025, at 5pm!
sharing space
with aisling mcdonald
Harmonious Ascent
Commissioned by the Jax Chamber, Jacksonville, Florida Aisling McDonald Artist Statement
As an immigrant, I have often felt lost and disconnected to those around me, searching for a sense of place and belonging. Growing up in Ireland, I saw the power that large public works have on the surrounding community, such as the Standing Stones of the Neolithic era, gothic architecture, and the political murals of today. These works inspire many myths and legends, provide spiritual contemplation, commemorate historic events, express complex feelings and beliefs, and define a sense of place. They create and define the community they surround. Creating outdoor sculpture allows me to create work that may become part of a community environment and provide that sense of place and belonging to others. I utilize Irish iconography and interlace knotwork within my work in an attempt to reconnect with my heritage. Later works explore how various aspects within a community are interconnected and how they can come together to create something beautiful. My smaller sculptural works and cast iron wall hangings utilizes Irish Iconography to explore the emotional repercussions of migration and to reconnect to the culture that I no longer get to participate in. My textural ceramics act as a visual diary that records my day to day emotions and reactions to my environment, society, and media. |
Aisling McDonald Bio
Aisling Millar was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1982 and immigrated to the Vero Beach, FL in August 1994. She moved to Jacksonville, Florida in 2000 to attend the University of North Florida. In 2005 she graduated with Bachelors of Arts in Education and in 2011 she graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ceramics and Sculpture. She received her MFA in Sculpture from East Carolina University in 2014. Aisling was the Instructor of Record at East Carolina University while working towards her MFA. She is currently an Adjunct Professor of 3-D Design, 2-D Design and Drawing I at the University of North Florida. She has worked for many arts organizations within the Jacksonville community including: Duval County Public Schools, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Cathedral Arts Project, the Ponte Vedra Cultural Center, and Art with a Heart at Wolfon Children’s Hospital. Aisling has completed public sculpture commissions locally for the City of Amelia Island, the City of Atlantic Beach, and for the Jax Chamber. Her work is also in public collections in Greenville, NC, and Macon, GA. She recently received an Art Ventures Grant from the Community Foundation of North Florida to create a large outdoor sculpture. She creates outdoor steel sculpture that is exhibited throughout the eastern United States. Currently her work is exhibited in Chattanooga, TN, Roswell, GA, and Winter Haven, FL. Along with sculpture, Aisling also creates ceramic sculptures, wall-hangings, and mosaics for both public and private commissions. She recently completed a commissioned ceramic wall hanging for the permanent collection of the Community Hospice and Palliative Care, Alice and T. O’Neal Douglas Center for Caring, in Downtown Baptist Jacksonville, Florida. 
Cast Iron Wall Hanging
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