Paul James Kearney
Galway city based contemporary painter by education and draughtsman by trade, Paul James Kearney combines these two disciplines in his digital practice. After seeing some of Paul’s artworks relating to his chemsex experiences at the ImpulseLDN shows in Queer Britain and in Soho recently, Leon spoke to the artist about the impacts of addiction, recovery and neurodivergence on his practice.
Leon: How long have you been an artist? Where did your interest develop?
Paul: As long as I can remember I was drawing and creating worlds to escape into. I remember once as a kid at a friend’s house — his bedroom was painted sky blue — and we drew an aquarium on the wall with crayons: fishes, seaweed, submarines. His mother, a solicitor, painted over it straight away. But I always made stuff, and I was known for it at school.
Leon: Did you study art?
Paul: I did, though I started in biotechnology at Galway University. I enjoyed subjects like genetic engineering where I could hyperfocus and follow a recipe, but I struggled with biochemistry. I was heavily involved in the art society and in my third year I chose to go to art college rather than repeat some exams. Later I did an MA at Galway University on the business side of art: curating, working with artists, learning to make it easier for curators and institutions to collaborate with creatives.
Paul James Kearney, An Evening in Brighton II (2018)
Leon: When did addiction enter the picture for you?
Paul: It started in my hometown of Galway and became more significant during my master’s when I re‑encountered heavier party scenes and class A drugs. Drugs helped me switch off early on, but then the fun turned problematic. I’d say the cycle ran from around 2015 until early this year. Relapse was a part of my experience. I saw people around me dying; over roughly an 11‑month span I dealt with around ten deaths I knew of, nine of which were drug related. I’d been introduced to the chemsex world; initially I treated it as subject matter for art and documented it in ways that protected people’s anonymity, but it was dangerous and personally costly. I lived in London for a while in 2019 with someone who later died from that scene. That was a big shock.
Leon: You were making art while addiction was happening. How did that sit with you?
Paul: I wouldn’t be the first artist to mine their life. It was reflective of what I was living through. My mediums have shifted: I trained in painting, but my strongest skill has always been drawing. Since about 2015 I’ve worked primarily with a screen-based drawing app called Doodle Buddy on iPad. The digital approach reflects the apps that enable chemsex culture as it’s part of the lived environment. I’ve used digital work for exhibitions and also print outputs on museum-quality paper. I still want to move into large-scale traditional painting at some point, too.
Paul James Kearney, An Evening in Brighton IV (2019)
Leon: How were the chemsex pieces received?
Paul: I was apprehensive about doing them because of the subject and worried about family and community response. But publicly I haven’t had negative feedback. The work was shown in exhibitions including Impulse in Soho and at Queer Britain. I think it’s important to document that part of social history: drugs and sex combined aren’t unique to one place. They’re global, and there is an epidemic in many cities. The first step is admitting there’s a problem.
Leon: How did substance use affect your art?
Paul: Initially substances felt like fuel for creativity. I even had a piece made when stoned that ended up in a state art collection. But over time it became a detriment. My work suffered when I was deep into addiction. Since committing to recovery this year my art has improved significantly. Learning to make without the substances and getting used to feeling my feelings again has been intense but positive.
Leon: You mentioned hyperfocus earlier. How do you see neurodivergence in relation to your practice and addiction?
Paul: I can get overwhelmed by racing thoughts, and drugs offered a quick solution to that. But I also have the ability to hyperfocus, which helps me enter creative flow intensely, something many people can’t do. I’m not a neurodivergence expert, but for me hyperfocus has been both an asset to art and a vulnerability for seeking quick escapes.
Paul James Kearney, An Evening in Chelsea I (2019)
Leon: What are you working on now? Any upcoming shows or residencies?
Paul: I’ve a show at Market Gallery in Dublin in January and an invitation to submit to Irish Contemporaries 5 in Santa Monica. I’ve applied for a few residencies. I’d like to translate the chemsex series into large paintings. Berlin would be a fitting context but the cost of living there, and low stipends make it hard. I was invited to the Los Angeles show, though I’m cautious about travelling to the U.S. at the moment.
Leon: Do you have any final thought on where art sits for you now?
Paul: Treating the subject honestly has been vital. My work is a record of social lives and dangers but it’s also personal process. Recovery has sharpened my practice: the work now is stronger because I’m present in a way I couldn’t be before.
www.facebook.com/pauljameskearneyart
Paul James Kearney, An Evening in Madrid II (2021)
Paul James Kearney biography:
Born in 1987 in Galway, Ireland, Paul James Kearney completed his BFA in Contemporary Painting under Blaise Drummond at Atlantic Technological University in 2014, and an MA in Arts Policy & Practice (MPP) at the University of Galway in 2015. In 2023, he completed a postgraduate diploma in eCPR at the Royal College of Surgeons, Dublin, under Daniel Fisher (MD, PhD) to study trauma and related disorders.
Kearney works primarily through digital media, which he prints on fine art, museum-quality paper as one-off editions. He has lived and worked in Galway, Limerick, Dublin, London, and Brighton, and currently maintains a studio at MART Studios in Galway.
He has exhibited in Ireland at institutions including The National Gallery of Ireland, The Royal Hibernian Academy, and the University of Galway, and internationally in locations such as New York, Los Angeles, Paris, São Paulo, and South Korea (CICA Museum).
His works are held in private collections internationally, as well as in institutional collections including The Irish State Art Collection (OPW), Dublin; University of Galway; CICA Museum, Gimpo, South Korea; Villanova University, Philadelphia; and Flazathores Conseil, Paris.
