Diana Copperwhite

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Diana Copperwhite
Born1969 (age 56–57)
Limerick, Ireland
Alma materNational College of Art and Design
Winchester School of Art
Limerick School of Art and Design
Known foroil painting
StyleAbstract expressionism
ElectedAosdána (2021)
Websitedianacopperwhite.net

Diana Copperwhite RHA (born 1969) is an Irish painter.[1] She is a member of Aosdána, an elite Irish association of artists.[2][3] She lives and works in Dublin and New York City.[4]

Early life and education

Copperwhite was born in Limerick in 1969.[5][6] She grew up in Patrickswell. Her father, Patrick Copperwhite, was a science teacher and self-taught artist who exhibited at the Oriel Gallery.[7] She studied at Limerick School of Art and Design, the National College of Art and Design (NCAD, Dublin) and Winchester School of Art.[8]

Career

Copperwhite is chiefly known for her work in oil painting; art critic Gail Levin says that her work "creates an exquisite tension between abstraction and figuration or representation of any kind. […] vibrating spectral bands have become a kind of a trademark in Copperwhite’s recent large paintings […] Copperwhite believes that in her paintings she has responded to Ireland’s changeable weather, which may have caused her to see the world as if she was looking through a visor into a “grey low-light vision."[9] She has also named 1960s psychedelic album covers as inspiration.[10]

In a 2017 review for Hyperallergic, Copperwhite’s work was described as employing multicolored, banded brushstrokes that create gradient effects.The review noted that her paintings combine elements of abstract expressionism with a contemporary visual language influenced by digital aesthetics, and that they often incorporate fragmentary figurative forms within complex, layered compositions.[11]

She has lectured at NCAD, Western Sydney University and the University of Massachusetts; she was elected to Aosdána in 2021.[12]

In 2025, Copperwhite’s work was included in a Stoney Road Press exhibition at the Clifden Arts Festival, where her paintings were presented as fine art prints produced in collaboration with Stoney Road Press.[13]

Selected exhibitions

Solo

Group

Selected Collections

References

  1. Shane, Robert R. (5 June 2019). "Diana Copperwhite: The Clock Struck Between Time". The Brooklyn Rail.
  2. "Virtual Studio Visit with Diana Copperwhite RHA". 18 May 2020.
  3. Dunne, Aidan. "It's all too much – and too little – in this world of bounty". The Irish Times.
  4. "About – Diana Copperwhite".
  5. "What Lies Beneath". independent. 3 February 2014.
  6. "Diana Copperwhite: I think about what the paintings can't do and then I try to do it". 10 April 2015.
  7. Dunne, Aidan. "Big pictures, big colours". The Irish Times.
  8. Diana Copperwhite CV (2020)
  9. "Diana Copperwhite - Overview". Kevin Kavanagh.
  10. O’Sullivan, John P. (18 August 2018). "Art review: Bounty" – via www.thetimes.co.uk.
  11. "Diana Copperwhite: Signal to Noise". Hyperallergic. 7 January 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  12. "Aosdána names five newly elected members". The Irish Times. 17 November 2021. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
  13. "Stoney Road Press brings handmade masterpieces to Clifden Arts Festival". Galway Advertiser. 28 August 2025. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  14. "Diana Copperwhite, The Only Thing Is The Everything, 2026". Kevin Kavanagh. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  15. "The Only Thing Is The Everything, Diana Copperwhite". Contemporary Art Gallery Association. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  16. Evans, Lily (23 January 2024). "Review | Diana Copperwhite: ONOMATOPOEIA by Adelaide Ng". The London Magazine. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  17. "Howard Hodgkin & Diana Copperwhite | Born in the Echoes". Kevin Kavanagh. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  18. "Onomatopoeia by Diana Copperwhite". www.limerick.ie. 27 April 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  19. "Diana Copperwhite – ONOMATOPOEIA – Highlanes Gallery". Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  20. "Diana Copperwhite | GIAF 2023 | Visual Arts | Galway International Arts Festival". www.giaf.ie. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  21. Shane, Robert R. (19 August 2024). "Diana Copperwhite: The Clock Struck Between Time | The Brooklyn Rail". brooklynrail.org. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  22. Dunne, Aidan. "It's all too much – and too little – in this world of bounty". The Irish Times. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  23. "Driven by Distraction". RHA Gallery. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  24. "TRUE COLOUR | 7 August - 6 September 2025 - Overview". Kevin Kavanagh. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  25. "The Shell/Ter Collective".
  26. "Supernova". Flowers Gallery. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  27. "Vision X". RHA Gallery. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  28. "PRISM: The art and science of light | The Glucksman". www.glucksman.org. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  29. "Many Worlds - Group show". Centre Culturel Irlandais. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  30. Tipton, Gemma (3 May 2011). ""The Fold: A Painting Show"". Artforum. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  31. "National Gallery of Ireland acquires 'Shapeshifter' by Diana Copperwhite". Kevin Kavanagh. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  32. "Diana Copperwhite | 4–28 October 2023 - Overview". Kevin Kavanagh. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  33. "The Original of Species - Diana Copperwhite". IMMA. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  34. "Copperwhite, Diana". artscouncil.emuseum.com. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  35. Moriarty, Aoife (12 June 2020). "19 of Limerick's most influential women making a difference". RSVP Live. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  36. "Diana Copperwhite". Ipsos B&A. Retrieved 20 April 2026.