PETER GALLO

The gallery is pleased to announce the first major survey of the work of Peter Gallo.

Although Peter Gallo's paintings, more than most, seem to derive directly from personal experiences, other qualities and characteristics are perhaps of comparable importance. Above all, Gallo's images reflect emotional openness and honesty; their blend of self-doubt, humour and defiance is curiously engaging, and in a culture that encourages us to present to the world only idealised and superficial versions of ourselves, the artist's recalcitrance comes as something of a shock. 

While Gallo's paintings aren't often confrontational, they can be unprepossessing; crusty surfaces, wan colouring, and generally abject demeanour are not normally intended to charm. More significantly, however, they embody a contemporary form of unease and anxiety that has much to do with feelings of rootlessness and exclusion. Sometimes this can lead to hardness and cynicism, but Gallo's pictures are usually devoid of this kind of negativity; they tend, in contrast, to be infused with a touching sense of vulnerability and yearning.  

The exhibition will be accompanied by a new publication with a text by Roger Cook. The Douglas Hyde Gallery would like to thank the artist, Anthony Reynolds, C. Sean Horton, and Roger Cook for their enthusiasm and support of the exhibition.