Impressionist Interiors
The National Gallery of Ireland presents an exhibition this summer highlighting a very different side of impressionism. 'Impressionist Interiors' will feature over 40 paintings and works on paper by Manet, Renoir, Degas, Monet, Signac and Cassat. Drawn from the gallery's collection alongside loans from important European and US collections, the exhibition will explore how artists used interior spaces as social metaphors. As well as showing interactions with interiors, the exhibition will examine how important the motif of the window was for impressionist artists. In practical terms, windows, balconies and threshold spaces allowed artists to paint in natural light. However, they also served to delineate differences between the public and the private. Also at the National Gallery is an exhibition entitled 'Revelation' in collaboration with the printmaking workshop Graphic Studio Dublin. Specially commissioned prints will be on show alongside a selection of the inspirational works from the collection providing fresh insights into the profound concept of revelation. The exhibition will feature 29 artists representing both Graphic Studio printmakers and invited artists; among them, Cliona Doyle, Yoko Akino, Stephen Lawlor, Jean Bardon, William Crozier, Guggi, John Kindness, Donald Teskey and Nigel Rolfe - see our feature on page 78 of this edition. Revelation: until 28 September; Impressionist Interiors: 10 May – 10 August
 
Summer Splendour
The Basement Gallery Summer Exhibition will be held in the splendour of Castle Coole on the edge of Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh. Contemporary Irish art by selected artists from all over Ireland will fill the Great Hall at this National Trust venue, a splendid backdrop for this collection of watercolours, original prints, acrylics and ceramic sculptures. Artists participating are Veronica Wallis, Marcus Patton, Anne Marie Robinson, Philip Morrison, John Belmore, Lord Erne and Bronagh Lawson. Summer Show: 2 – 3 May
 
40th anniversary show in Louth
North Louth artists celebrate their 40th anniversary this year by staging a special exhibition with work by current artists and founding members from 1968. These founder members include such prominent names as Nano Reid, John Haugh, Bea Orpen, Kenneth Webb, John Behan, Constance Short, Eric Patten, Cecil Barrow, and Ernest Mc Dowell. Current artists include Sandra Bell, Ciara Agnew, and Irene Woods with guest artists Mary Donnelly and Anna Lenane exhibiting at this show. Check it out at the County Museum in Dundalk. North Louth Artists: 22 May – 2 June

 
A Taste of India
The Signal Arts Centre is hosting the first solo show in Wicklow of Bray native Susan Montgomery. Now living in Cork, the artist divides her time between living in rural Ireland and travelling, mainly in India which has strongly influenced her. Part travelogue, part nature study, the latest work makes references to history, religion, sanskrit poetry and nature itself. Susan Montgomery: May
 
Hanscomb landscapes at the Blue Leaf
Guy Hanscomb studied painting at the New Orleans Academy and Chelsea College. He moved to Ireland in 1999, settling first in Glenn na Smol in the Dublin Mountains and during the next four years his paintings concentrated mainly on the immediate landscapes surrounding his home. Since moving away from Dublin, the sea has played an increasingly important role in his work and much of his recent painting has been inspired by the rugged coast of Donegal. His paintings invariably seek to capture fleeting moments of light and colour and the transient atmospheric effects that typify the Irish landscape. See his work at the Blue Leaf Gallery in May. Guy Hanscomb: 16 – 29 May