Artists & Photographers from Cork and Shanghai responded with their Art in terms of colour , street life, architecture, people , vision and culture 

Eoin Mac Cárthaigh: 

 Aseries of photos I took in May of this year, when the local visual artist and activist known as Welly Boot (real name Helen) decided to do a fund raiser for Palestine by having her head shaved, in public, at the Quay Co-Op, Cork. Helen had recently been diagnosed with cancer. Rather than have her hair fall out, as a result of the chemotherapy, Helen decided to go with the look, in advance and raise some money for Palestine in the process.

Harry Moore 

Cork – Shanghai – Celebrating 20 years of friendship When I visited Shanghai I was fascinated by the way the small shops, often under tall buildings used for other functions, spread into the pavements. Yhe pinhole long exposures give a sense of the presence of proprietors and customers but it is the products they sell that dominate visually. The glaring exception was in the Apple outlet

Virginia Giglio

 “Street Bitz” Mixed media found objects on the streets of Cork

Virginia Giglio lives in Cork where she is a full-time artist and musician. Concert Manager of the Cork Light Orchestra with whom she is a vocal soloist, she also plays flute, Irish traditional flute and Native American flute with the Elemental Duo. Her art includes drawings, collages, paper, recycled art, and digital graphic design. She is Artist in Residence at Shandon Studios for 2025.

KT Murray

KT Murray is a visual artist and a CCAD graduate whose practice, originated with the traditional media of drawing, painting and print. It quickly progressed to the use of mixed media, cycling into multimedia via the photo/video essay and the realisation of a characteristic recurring pattern; An experimentation and exploration of combined aesthetics. This culminated in an immersive installation, soundscape and the social engagement project Salon du The (paintings, afternoon tea and discussion while residing on a chaise longue) for Art Trail 2009, setting the work on a socially engaged route. 2010 brought a more peripatetic practice and an interest in overland surface odysseys to outp osts as ‘liminal ‘places. A practice weighted towards process and a possibility of outcomes. This was followed by a MA in Social Practice And Creative Environment (M.A.S.P.A.C.E) in LSAD (2016). Today the practice is mainly situation specific. It may require a myriad of media, platforms and methodologies, sometimes combined or individually employed dictated by the parameters of the project work but also the artists’ process. It is a praxis that experiments a nd questions. Generative processes run the gamut from reading presentations, prose, photography/film forms, soundscapes, immersive installation, relational encounters, performative film experie nce, to locative and transmedia platforms. It is preoccupied with performative journey.

Cllr Kieran McCarthy 

Cllr Kieran McCarthy visited Shanghai as Lord Mayor of Cork several times and was fascinated by the combination of new and old architecture 

Kieran McCarthy is a born and bred Cork City man. Growing up in Ballinlough he developed a great love for his hometown and today remains dedicated to promoting the past, present and future of this city and region.

After attending Colaiste Chríost Rí, Kieran went on to study Archaeology and Geography at University College Cork. On completing his Joint Honours BA degree, he went on to undertake a Masters in Geography. Even after devoting four years to furthering his knowledge of the city, Kieran wasn’t satisfied to leave his love of all things Cork and has completed a PhD on the River Lee Valley and the importance of remembering, collective memory, identity and protecting our historic landscapes.

Mary P O Connor

Multi Media artist / Photographer

Mary P O Connor studied at the Crawford College of Art Cork and the Royal College of Art London. She has exhibited widely in Europe and the USA and her work is held in many private and public collections. She has received numerous awards both for Art & Photography including from GPA ( Guinness Peat Aviation), Elizabeth T Greenshields, Madame Tussauds, RHA ( Royal Hibernian Academy) & RA ( Royal Academy)

Mary is represented by Treadwells Gallery in Vienna & Berlin and Pyms Gallery in London. Marys work has always been concerned with social and political themes and pushing her audience to react. In 2007 she became a Buddhist nun and her work has gradually become more reflective, concerned more with inner emotions, change making and sense of place within the broader human family. Her spiritual practice feeds into her artistic practice & visa versa

The Rugby Match: Photographs

Head Space Series : Photography/ Painting /Mixed media

Street Life Series: Photographs 

Martin Duggan

Photographer, Local historian and Shandon Street trader, Martin is a second generation cobbler who grew up on Shandon street and has operated his shoe repair shop on the street for many years and documented the lives and stories of the local population building up a historical record of Shandon through the years. He is a multi award winning photographer. 

 Wang Chen, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor currently teaching in the Visual Communication Design program at Shanghai University. She serves as the head of the Nano Silver Plate Imaging Studio and is a member of The Royal Photographic Society (RPS). With twenty-five years of deep dedication to photography creation and education, her research focuses on surreal visual photography and classical imaging. Her photographic practice is rooted in the “New Documentary School,” skillfully integrating the emotional expression of subjective documentary. Her works exhibit both a delicate, warm visual texture and profound humanistic reflection. Guided by the core philosophy that “images erect monuments for memory,” she specializes in using the camera as a medium to connect the subtle trajectories of individual destinies with the macroscopic fabric of era development. Her representative work “Prosperity” has garnered widespread attention in the industry for its unique narrative perspective.

Fion Gunn

www.fiongunn.org | Instagram: @gunnfion | YouTube: FionGunn

Fion Gunn is a London-based Diaspora Irish artist with an international practice in 2D, 3D, new media and immersive installation. Her socially engaged work combines cross-cultural, intergenerational and interdisciplinary collaboration, underpinned by a commitment to accessible, co-created experiences. She was the first Irish artist commissioned for a public sculpture in China (Zhangjiakou) and first Artist in Residence at the Institute of Irish Studies, University of Liverpool.

2 panels from the larger work one is Shanghai one is Cork

Kim-Ling Morris 

Starting life in the UK, Kim-Ling Morris has lived in Africa and South-East Asia then in Europe as an adult before settling in Cork, Ireland. Although a Biochemical Engineer for nearly 20 years, Morris developed her art practice in parallel. She began with sculpture in Leamington Spa, UK, continuing at the École Duperré, Paris, France, also exhibiting in France. She has gained her Fine Art Textiles Special Purpose Award at CIT Crawford College of Art & Design in Cork, Ireland, where she has exhibited nationally. In 2011, Kim-Ling Morris became one of three co-founding directors of Sample-Studios where she now retains the role of financial manager. She is a member and Treasurer of the Cork Textiles Network and is on the board of the Design and Craft Council of Ireland.​

  PDF for interactive collaboration with Shanghai artist click here

Geoff Spiers 

Geoff is a painter and digital artist who has been based in Cork since 2001. His work, described by the science fiction writer JG Ballard, as “very striking and original”, explores the landscape of human nature, sometimes literally, In a world where the media is omnipresent and in which we are constantly

under surveillance or scrutiny and increasingly isolated from each other and our true nature.

Francis Bacon’s abstract figuration, William Burroughs’ cut-ups, Ballard’s dystopian futures, Max Ernst’s surrealism and Warhol’s serial pop imagery simmer beneath the surface of Spiers’ colourful images.

In late 2022 Geoff opened the Laneway Gallery in Shandon with the aim of not only showing his own work, but also as an independent space to show and promote other local and national artists work.

lwww.lanewaygallery.ie  @lanewaygalleryireland @art.spiers

Don Samec

Don Antoine Samec, aka Poetonic, a mixed media artist working with collage to explore resilience, identity, and rebirth. Born in California, raised in France, and now based in Cork, I approach collage like Kintsugi-breaking and reassembling images to create something new.

With a master’s in cinematography specializing in film editing, I’ve taken my love for assembling pictures in a different direction, orienting myself towards analog collage techniques. Since moving to Cork over three years ago, I’ve extensively photographed its urban landscape, using these images as collage material. The city keeps being an endless source of inspiration. My work has been exhibited in Corsica, Las Vegas, New York, and Seattle, with collaborations including Superchief Gallery, Dam Zine, and JRNY Gallery.

Henry O Brien

Henry O’ Brien is a renowned photographer based in Cork City, celebrated for his captivating images of landscapes, seascapes, nature, cityscapes, light painting, astrophotography, and portraiture. With a deep connection to his hometown, Henry is a noted chronicler of Cork City and its picturesque surrounds, skillfully capturing its essence through his lens. Highly sought after as a wedding and event photographer, he brings creativity and precision to every occasion. Henry is particularly accomplished in using flash photography to illuminate stunning night shots, creating dramatic and unforgettable visuals.

Sheena Crowley 

These photos were taken on my phone between 2024 and 2026. I am an amateur artist/musician and I love to delve into all mediums of expression as often as possible. I mostly share my work on social media. I immediately thought of nature when I saw the ‘Architecture’ theme as I think the Golden Ratio has to be the best representation of architecture there is but it could just as easily be ‘Vision’ because nature is like a vision of heaven on earth.

Sheena is a well known figure in the music industry running Crowleys Music shop and was responsible for returning Rory Gallaghers guitar to his homeland 

YUWU SHAN

My name is Yuwu Shan, an entrepreneur based in Ireland and Director of Innolife Beauty Ltd. I serve as General Secretary of the Chinese Business Association in Cork and General Secretary of the Shanghai University Alumni Association in Ireland, actively promoting business, education, and cultural exchange between China and Ireland.   I am actively engaged in education and cultural exchange through the Ireland-China Culture Education Centre, where I help organize language and cultural immersion programs for young students from China and Irish students to China. I am also passionate about sustainable living, landscape design, and cross-cultural collaboration.

 Dr. Wang, Shuozhong, was a professor of Shanghai University before his retirement. He graduated from Peking University, China, and received his PhD degree from the University of Birmingham, UK. He was an experienced researcher in image and information technology, and has published many papers, and nine books including two on post-processing of digital photograph. Dr. Wang was a hobbyist of photography early in the era of film, and later closely followed the rapid progress of digital techniques. As an image processing researcher, he has a unique point of view towards the on-site shooting and post-editing. He loves nature and the city he has ever lived. After retiring, Dr. Wang enjoyed traveling all around and taking photos of the beautiful scenery and human activities. He shares his works with people through the internet and lecturing, with much appreciation from his fans.