National Gallery of Ireland Zurich Portrait Prize 2022

Cara's drawing 'Double Self Portrait' has been selected for this year's Zurich Portrait Prize shortlist. All the shortlisted works will be on display in The National Gallery from November 26th 2022 until April 2nd 2023. The exhibition will then move to The Regional Cultural Centre, Letterkenny, from June 3rd to September 2nd 2023. View all of the shortlisted works here.

Royal Hibernian Academy Annual Exhibition, 29th May - 24th July 2022

This year the RHA selected Cara's large-scale drawing 'Double Self-Portrait' to be included in their annual exhibition. Visit the expansive show packed with artworks until July 24th. All artworks can be viewed and purchased HERE.

Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Professional Development Arts Grant, March 2022​

DLR awarded Cara an arts grant, which will provide important support as Cara continues her series of 11 portraits, and works toward the next stage of development in her practice.

Dublin City Council Artist's Residency 4th October 2021 - 4th April 2022

Undertaking a portraiture project featuring 11 portraits of women connected to the arts, politics and activism, Cara is completing a 6-month artist's residency in Dublin city centre, awarded by DCC. As Cara's first artist's residency, it will provide invaluable time and space to concentrate on the project and her practice.

Arts Council Agility Award, August 2021

Cara was awarded an Agility Award in 2021, support which will greatly assist in the research and painting of her next long-term project.

Royal Hibernian Academy Annual Exhibition, 20th Oct 2020 - 13th Dec 2020

Cara is delighted to be exhibiting her painting 'Plant Pose' in this year's RHA Annual Exhibition. The show has moved online and you can view all the artworks at
https://rhagallery.viewingrooms.com/viewing-room/.  

Royal Ulster Academy Virtual Annual Exhibition, 16th Oct 2020 - 3rd Jan 2021

Cara is delighted to be exhibiting her piece 'Portrait of Sebastian Adams with Driftwood Violin' at this year's RUA Annual Show. The exhibition has moved online and can be virtually viewed at  https://www.royalulsteracademy.org. 

Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Emerging Artist Grant, December 2020

Cara was awarded one of Dun Laoghaire Rathdown's Emerging Artist Grants in 2020. This grant will go towards the establishment of a new, year-long painting project Cara will begin in December 2020. 

RUA Silver Medal Prize sponsored by Tom Caldwell Installations for 'Paris (Second Evening)', ​October 2019

Cara's painting 'Paris (Second Evening) was awarded the Silver Medal Prize for a work by a non-Academy member, sponsored by Tom Caldwell Installations, in this year's RUA Annual Exhibition. The piece, as well as the double portrait 'Molly and Ruby' will be on display in the Royal Ulster Academy until January 5th 2020.

Entrepreneurship in Creative Industries Course and Gallery Placement, Seville, September 2019

Cara achieved a place on the Erasmus Plus Course in Entrepreneurship in Creative Industries 2019. She will be studying and working in contemporary gallery Alarcón Criado in Seville, Spain. 

Article in Soapbox section of Hotpress Magazine June 2019

On behalf of Mongoose, Cara wrote a piece about the treatment of artists in the music industry in Ireland. The article appeared in Hotpress Magazine on the 24th June 2019. Read it here

Contribution to Journal.ie article June 2019

Cara contributed to the article '6 Wild and Wonderful Festivals to Party at this Summer, According to Irish Musicians' that appeared on thejournal.ie on June 5th 2019. Read it here

27 Portraits in 27 Days Project March/April 2019

During March and April 2019 Cara undertook a project in which she completed 27 portraits in 27 days. Each portrait sitting lasted four hours. In June, the sitters were invited back to see their portraits exhibited together, with photography by Louise Smith. View the portraits and photos of the event here.

Zurich Portrait Prize 2018 Finalist in The National Gallery of Ireland!

Cara is delighted to have her double portrait 'Molly and Ruby' shortlisted in The National Gallery of Ireland's Zurich Portrait Prize. It will be on view in The National Gallery alongside 24 other portraits until the 13th January 2019.

Royal Ulster Academy Annual Exhibition Oct 2018 - Jan 2019

Cara has a piece titled 'La Viñuela' in this year's Royal Ulster Academy Annual Exhibition. It runs from the 19th October 2018 until the 6th January 2019. Read about the exhibition here.

Article in The Irish Times Magazine 'Sound Off' Column August 2018

Cara's piece about suncream and the heatwave appeared in The Irish Times Magazine 'Sound Off' Column on Saturday August 18th, 2018! Read the piece HERE and view the accompanying illustrations HERE.

'Ulysses: An Opera' Poster for Bloomsday Festival June 2018

Cara designed the poster for 'Ulysses: An Opera' which ran as part of the Bloomsday Festival 2018. The poster features Molly and Leopold Bloom.  View it here.

Royal Hibernian Academy Summer Exhibition May - August 2018

Cara's work was selected as part of the Royal Hibernian Academy's Annual Exhibition. The show runs until August 11th, situated in Ely Place, off Stephen's Green, Dublin. Look out for the still life entitled 'Movie Still'. You may find it twice! 

 Illustrations in SelfMade Dublin's 'Unseen' Zine February 2018

Cara was delighted to contribute a series of illustrations to SelfMade Dublin's 'Unseen' Zine. The publication, launched on Feb 2nd, featured contributions from a range of D.I.Y musicians in Ireland, with a focus on female acts in the industry. Cara illustrated a collection of stories from her band Mongoose, highlighting the ups and downs that come hand in hand with working in the music industry. See the full piece and accompanying illustrations here. And go to SelfMade Dublin website for more info on their next events.

 Christmas Fair Thank You December 2017

Thanks a million to everyone who made the effort to drop in to Cara in Studio 10 Christmas Fair on December 2nd. Your support is appreciated!

Carasurelook is on Instagram! October 2017

Carasurelook is now a part of the insta world! Follow @carasurelook for paintings, drawings and more.

Greenacres Festival Exhibition October - November 2017 

Cara has two paintings in this year's Festival Exhibition in Greenacres Gallery, Wexford. Both are oil on board - one a still life, the other a study of a model from the RHA classes. The exhibition is on until 11th November.

Royal Hibernian Academy Summer Exhibition May - August 2017

Cara is delighted to have exhibited two portraits in the RHA Summer Show this year. One is a portrait of her friend and bandmate Muireann, based on a photograph taken at a festival. The other is a self-portrait inspired by DaVinci's 'Lady with an Ermine'. Show runs until August 12th.

September 2016 - May 2017

Royal Hibernian Academy Access Programme
Cara was awarded an RHA School Access Scheme place in Life Drawing, Oil Painting and Self-Directed Life Drawing classes in the RHA, Dublin. This invaluable opportunity allowed Cara to build her technical drawing, painting and anatomical knowledge.

June 2016

NCAD Graduate Show
Cara's graduate exhibition took place in June 2016, where her project comprised of a series of paintings inspired by everyday social media. The portraits were based on photos found on social media such as instagram and facebook. Cara set up a snapchat account called 'I Call This Art' and spread the username around Dublin. Members of the public sent over 100 snaps in, and Cara painted a selection of them, complete with their captions. The project's aim was to explore and question the place of art in everyday, modern life, and to highlight the creativity people use everyday, taking photographs and selfies, setting composition and colour. The work aimed to create a connection between the fleeting nature of this media and traditional painting and portraiture.