MEMORIES and experiences of growing up in rural Fermanagh continue to influence the work of artist Amanda Montgomery, who is now based in Belfast.

A fine artist, Amanda's pieces vary from paintings to sculpture, and the materials she uses always depends on the subject matter of her works.

Here she talks to The Impartial Reporter about her artistic background, her artistic style and what art means to her.

What is your artistic background?

I MOVED from Fermanagh to Belfast to study Foundation Art at the University of Ulster.

Furthering my studies at Coventry School of Art and Design, I graduated with a BA Honours First Class in Fine Art.

After graduating, I became self-employed, set up a studio and have worked steadily on curatorial projects, commissions, contracts and exhibitions.

I completed a PhD in Public Art with the University of Ulster, and also lectured to students on BA and MA courses.

What inspires your art?

THE human condition – our strengths, our flaws, our passions, our frailties and what draws us to our particular place in nature.

Who/what are your biggest influences?

MY FAMILY influence me every day and in every way. Artists I enjoy are many; a few include Magdelena Abakanowitz, Kathe Kollwitz, TP Flanagan and FE McWilliams.

I had the pleasure of meeting Elizabeth Frink in her studio not long before she passed, and that experience and her kindness has always stayed with me.

Is there a specific place that you do your work?

MY FIRST studio was with Queen Street Studios in the centre of Belfast in the early 1990s. It was a wonderful place to be, to learn, to share experiences and ideas with other artists.

I became a director there and still stay in contact with artists I met in those early days.

I then had studios in other areas of the city before setting up base at home.

I also work on-site in education, health and community settings, often working with those with vulnerabilities.

Therefore, it was necessary to reschedule these to take place once Covid-19 regulations allow.

What has been your most ambitious piece, to date?

I HAVE been fortunate in that I have been commissioned and employed in many outstanding projects across various areas of the arts.

I have enjoyed curating and leading projects as well as collaborating with other visual artists and musicians, composers, theatre companies, poets and art forms.

It’s so interesting to see and learn how others work. It always intrigues me to see how far we can push the boundaries and overlap.

A project can also be ambitious in terms of ‘moment’, and I have been fortunate to share in other people’s joy, perhaps in tutorial, when they have had a breakthrough in their art.

In terms of actual pieces, my first commission comes to mind. It was very exciting, as I was 21 years old and I was commissioned to create three large sculptural works for an indoor garden for a building opposite Coventry Cathedral.

There is also a lot of ambition in the three large paintings I completed for exhibition when in Leighton studio ACNI in Banff National Park, Canada. That was a thrilling experience, with wolves, bears, elk and cougars passing by my window.

What different artistic media do you use and which is your favourite?

I HAVE enjoyed lots of materials, from working in mixed-media to pouring bronze, working in wood or acrylic and watercolour.

I have created installations requiring many materials – I don’t like to stick to one material.

It all depends on the subject matter. I do love charcoal, and I always seem to go back to it.

What are you currently working on?

I AM working on private commissions and a new body of work for exhibition, and offering online classes.

Do you exhibit your work anywhere?

YES, I’ve exhibited nationally and internationally, and currently have pieces online with Hambly and Hambly at Dunbar House, and The Drawing Box exhibitions, touring internationally.

Any new artistic ventures planned for 2021?

I HAVE exhibitions on the horizon and more to work towards and commissions to complete, as well as on-site contracts to continue.

What has been your favourite project, to date?

MY FAVOURITE is probably whatever one I am working on at that moment, as that’s the way I work.

It’s an exploration and investigation into a feeling, a mood, a subject. That’s what I become absorbed in.

The pieces I created many years ago for the Marble Arch Caves, Railway Station Brookeborough, Crom and the Bogland projects I instigated in Fermanagh will always be close to my heart.

Some of the pieces I am working on at the moment are about and around Fermanagh memories, and that’s my ‘favourite’ right now.

What are you up to when you aren’t creating art?

WELL, I have three sons, who keep me very busy! My husband, Mark, our sons and our two pups like the outdoor life, and we spend as much time as possible walking and enjoying life and then, once back inside, lighting up the fire with a few logs!

How would you describe your artistic style?

FOR me, it's about investigating, finding a way in through materials that change from subject to subject depending on what lends itself best.

What does your art mean to you?

IT'S a big part of me. I have a need to make and I think it comes from my background in Fermanagh where I was lucky enough to grow up on a farm.

I was always making mud pies, climbing in the bales to make something out of the straw, or building sods in the bog when I should have been clamping the turf!

I am happy to say that those memories and experiences have stayed in my heart and have featured heavily in my work.

I still regularly return to Fermanagh to see my family, and am looking forward to visiting again once Covid travel restrictions allow.

Amanda's art is available to view via her Facebook page, Amanda Montgomery Studio (www.facebook.com/amandamontgomerystudio/).