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Award-Winning Omeath Visual Artist Anna Marie Savage is to showcase her latest work 'Uisce Salach' (Irish for 'dirty water') in two solo exhibitions in 2025.
The first exhibition will take place at the Watergate Theatre in Kilkenny on 1 May with the opening reception running from 5pm-7pm. The exhibition will be opened by the prolific and well-known Kilkenny artist, Vicki O'Donoghue, and will run until 31 May. Following that, the second exhibition will be hosted at the Gerard Dillon Gallery in An Cultúrlann, Belfast on 7 August.
Savage’s newest work, Uisce Salach, addresses the alarming environmental impact of the illegal dumping of illicit fuels, particularly in the local rivers along the Irish border. She is currently collaborating with Leeds University on a project that investigates the impact of illicit fuels on the environment along the Mexican and Irish borders. Through her experimental hybrid prints, ink collages, and works on canvas and board, she highlights the contamination of our waterways by the illegal fuel industry, specifically focusing on the River Fane, Co. Louth. Over the past year, Savage has meticulously collected samples of polluted water from the river, which she analysed under a microscope. The resulting art pieces offer a striking visual translation of these samples, exploring the detrimental effects on both the river and the wider aquatic ecosystem.
Savage’s career has been marked by a number of prestigious recognitions. A Fine Art graduate from the University of Ulster, where she earned a First-Class Honours Degree in 2009, she has exhibited across Ireland and beyond. In 2019, she was accepted into Drawn from Borders, part of the ‘Understanding the Decade of Centenaries’ project, in collaboration with the Nerve Centre and the Tower Museum, Derry, and Artlink, Co. Donegal. This led to her participation in Frontier Work, shown at the Regional Cultural Centre in Letterkenny in January 2022, curated by Garrett Carr.
Savage’s exceptional talent was recognised in 2023 when she was awarded the prestigious Agility Award by the Arts Council of Ireland. Her work was also featured in the Ulster Academy’s 142nd Annual Exhibition in Belfast. Furthermore, she was shortlisted for the 2024 Wexford Emergence Award and is currently showcasing her work at the BEEP Painting Prize Biennial 2024 in Wales, with the exhibition running from November 2024 to April 2025.
Uisce Salach promises to be a poignant and timely exploration of the intersection between environmental destruction and human activity. Through her innovative artistic approach, Anna Marie Savage continues to use her platform to raise awareness and inspire change and engage audiences with her powerful visual commentary on the environment and societal issues.
