Christina steps up with shoe exhibition at Union Hall

AN exhibition featuring a series of etchings that a mother made of her son’s shoes is to be featured at the Cnoc Bui gallery in Union Hall.

Christina Todesco-Kelly is one of two artists to exhibit her work – 49 drawings of her son Oscar’s shoes – at an exhibition alongside Fiona Walsh, which opens on March 28th.

Christina said the shoes featured in the exhibition were collected from the day of his birth until the day he left for university.

The bulk of the drawings were undertaken during a residence at the Uillinn West Cork Arts Centre in 2022, said Christina.

‘I have always loved art, however, it has taken until my 60s to practice as a professional artist,’ said Christina, who has been married to the artist John Kelly for more than 25 years.

She explained that she got the confidence to start working in earnest after attending a drawing class, followed by self-directed life drawing at the Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin.

Although Christina is right-handed, she said she only draws with her left.

‘This came about when I arrived late at the first RHA self-directed life drawing class and due to the position of the easel I had to draw left-handed for a while,’ she explained.

‘I found both the experience and the actual drawing so interesting that I have continued to do so ever since.’

Christina said she initially planned to keep the original drawings for her son. But after doing the 49 drawings, Christina went one step further by creating 49 plates at Cork Printmakers, which were subsequently turned into etchings.

Christina said she is delighted to be exhibiting her work alongside Fiona Walsh whose exhibition is entitled The Colours of Our Belonging.