IRISH MOSS OF A DEAD MAN’S SKULL, Nuala Clarke, The Owl Circus. 

Available from March 18th, 2025

 It is a fierce meditation on the inherent healing power of abstract art. Visual artist Nuala Clarke explores three bodies of her work (or “healings”) and through them, navigates an ever-deepening awareness of the mystery of being and painting; demonstrating that such awareness is both an essential requirement for—and the innate result of—abstraction.

Clarke reflects upon her relationship with four Roberts—Irwin, Brown, Chender, and Boyle—examining how each Robert illuminates the path of her practice. In their own ways, the four Roberts demonstrate and encourage her investigation into the relationship between creative force and abstraction, what it requires, and where one must fearlessly travel to do so. Equally conveyed in her words and paintings, Clarke delicately unfolds the vibrant alchemical process as practiced while an artist paints, loves, swims, forgets, remembers, and rests in dream.

Beautifully crafted, Irish Moss of A Dead Man’s Skull is 216 full-colour uncoated pages, with 86 images, sewn binding, and luxurious five-inch French flaps. It is both of and about the words and images within—a small installation to marvel through on the train, in the tub, or, perhaps, just before a refreshing swim in the Irish sea.”