Annie Mar is one of a kind. Raised in Cork with a rich background in art and media, she has taken the local Cork scene by storm with no intention of slowing down. Annie is a founding member of the Cork Zine fest, an active Sample Studios member, and is supported by her BA in History of Art and Philosophy (UCC), and diplomas in Textiles (Crawford Art College) and Illustration (Cork College of FET). Elysia from our Box Office and Marketing team sat down with Annie this week to discuss her current exhibition here in Triskel, the up-coming Special Things workshops, but also to discuss her broader work in animation, illustration and so much more.

Describe your art in three words.

 Spiritual, personal, weird.

How would you explain a “zine” to someone who has never heard of one before?

 They’re little books that you make yourself. They could be photocopied at home or printed, or a one-off you’ve drawn yourself and folded into a little booklet.

Is there a big scene or culture for zines?

Yeah, the culture’s huge. I went to an illustration fest in Hastings, and everyone had them!

Who are some of your biggest influences?

Leonora Carrington is a big one. I’ve been reading a book about Picasso at the moment, and then Frida Kahlo is a huge one as well.

A lot of your art and creation draws influence from nature; is there a particular place you love to go to for inspiration?

 I do love being outside. My partner’s from Glengarriff, in the mountains and very isolated but surrounded by trees and water, so somewhere like that.

You mention on your website that DIY principles are at the core of the art you produce; why is DIY so important?

 I think it brings a very specific energy when everyone’s contributing and it’s started by artists themselves, or people just coming in to see what you do and get more involved. I also feel it’s more accessible as it’s less intimidating for someone who says they know nothing about art. We can find out more together!

If you could display your art anywhere in the world, any gallery, museum or open space, where would you choose?

That’s a tough one; I don’t see it in any kind of gallery. I think it would be some kind of space you wouldn’t normally find artwork.

Familial bonds and mourning seem to be prevalent themes in your work. What inspired you to focus on these aspects when you create?

My family is all very creative– my mother is an artist, my grandfather was a painter, and my granny was a potter– so when you’re making art and you have that in your family, you’re naturally very tied to what’s come before you. But with the grief in the art, especially because my grandfather was a painter– I inherited a lot of things from his studio– it was working with his materials and trying to understand what he was doing while also thinking of our relationship and how I’ve changed in the time he hasn’t been here.

Do you feel you’re following his footsteps in a way?

I think so, in a way. I’m probably doing closest to what he was doing in terms of painting on canvas, and I think it would be interesting to know now what we’d talk about or how we’d work together. Working together on a canvas is the closest I think I’ll get to that.

What has changed most during the time you first began your career as an artist to now, in your opinion?

There used to be a lot more space ten years ago for artists. Now, there’s a lot of empty space that’s not being used and that’s pretty frustrating for artists, and also musicians. You don’t need facilities, just a space, so in that regard it has changed a lot. In general, I’ve always found Cork quite supportive of art.

Any advice you’d give an aspiring local artist?

It’s so cliché, but keep doing it. Keep doing what you love, and go out and explore, meet people. It’ll all fit into place.

Tell me a bit about your upcoming workshop, “Special Things” and how it came to be?

Special Things started last year when I was on residency in CSN, I had just gotten these two canvases (her grandfather’s two paintings that sit behind us). I just started adding to them, and realised how many memories were coming back and how it was affecting me emotionally. My mum then offered me the drawers from his studio, and I wanted to bring that into the space and see what I could access with them here. Special Things came about because these are things that are connecting me to memories and another realm that aren’t physically accessible. So, I am running two workshops in July where I want people to bring an object to the workshop to explore the connections they have with those objects.

Throughout her residency in Triskel from 5 June to 27 July, Annie Mar will be holding a workshop titled ‘Special Things’ in the Triskel Sample Project Space where she will engage fellow Sample-Studios members as well as the public and members of the Cork Cultural Companions Network, an organisation that connects their community of older people to events in the city and county. These workshops will produce drawings for the ‘Special Things’ zine, which will be launched in Triskel during the exhibition period. The first workshop is on Wed 2 July, the second on Sat 26 July.