New work by David King, the winner of the inaugural RHA Craig Hennessy Scholarship, was unveiled at the Hallward Gallery in Merrion Square, Dublin, this week.
Interested art lovers who came to see the work included artists Jackie Stanley and Campbell Bruce, Rita Hughes, of Hughes and Hughes Bookshops, Hugh Mohan SC, Mike Murphy of RTÉ fame, art critic Ciarán Bennet and Ronan Sheehan, author of Foley's Asia and a Poetry Ireland director.
"The way he has handled the media at his age, it's exceedingly accomplished. He shows great technical virtuosity in the realisation of the images," said artist and former president of the RHA, Carey Clarke, who drew comparisons between the work of King and that of Cézanne.
Singer Mary Stokes and her husband, Brian Palm, whose own artwork is currently on view at the Oireachtas group exhibition in Dún Laoghaire's town hall, running until next Thursday, were also among the admirers at the opening.
Caroline Murphy, a sculptor based in Skeagh in Co Kilkenny, came to congratulate the young artist.
Noel and Mary Redmond, whose son, Stephen, inspired King's triptytch, which won the RHA Craig Hennessy Scholarship, were both there to view his latest work.
The two boys were at school together 15 years ago in Scoil Neasáin in Baldoyle, Dublin, when tragedy struck and Stephen Redmond was lost at sea.
The winning triptytch, which now hangs in the OPW in St Stephen's Green, deals with loss and memory, says King. "When you're that age, it hits home that things are not permanent."
"It's lovely to know that he's still thought about. He was a fisherman," said Noel Redmond, standing in front of a painting of the sea, You'll Look For Me. "By looking at the paintings, it's so real," he said.
The exhibition runs at the Hallward Gallery until Wednesday, April 2nd.