A psychiatrist-turned-artist is preparing to open her first major solo exhibition in Dublin later this month, marking a remarkable career shift that has caught the attention of collectors and curators across Ireland and beyond.

Anna McKeever’s Full Beam opens at Gormleys Gallery on September 25 and runs until October 20.

The exhibition draws from her deep understanding of the human condition, exploring themes of connection, belonging and the Irish psyche.

She describes her work as less about literal representation and more about evoking atmosphere. “The land pulses, shifts and breathes rather than an attempt to replicate it exactly as it appears,” she said.

McKeever’s path to the Dublin art scene has been anything but conventional. She spent over a decade working in medicine, specialising in psychiatry, before turning to painting full time in 2020.

Her large-scale canvases, characterised by bold colours and dynamic textures, create immersive semi-abstract landscapes where myth and memory intertwine.

Ancient Celtic mythology and the lyrical spirituality of John O’Donohue’s poetry are layered with contemporary colour and texture, producing what she calls “the reimagining of a place; the stirring of something ancient and ancestral, but presented in a contemporary way”.

Since opening her Belfast studio in 2021, McKeever has staged a series of sell-out shows. Last year she was named one of Ulster Business’s ‘ones to watch’ for her rapid rise in the arts.

Now, with Full Beam, she is eager to connect with audiences in Dublin for the first time.

Motherhood is also shaping her new work. Expecting her second child, she said: “There was creation going on within me, and around me as I made these paintings. Pregnancy brings heightened emotional acuity. Sensitivity sharpens. Motherhood changes you so that naturally impacts the work.”

McKeever credits her former profession with sharpening her instincts as an artist. “As a psychiatrist, I was interested in communication. You often have to tap into hidden currents of thought, memory and emotion. You must be a good listener.

“I think the same is true to be a good artist. Painting is another form of communication, one that transcends the need for words.”

For McKeever, art is ultimately accessible. “Art speaks in colour, texture and form, you don’t need to be an expert to understand.”

Full Beam runs at Gormleys Dublin from September 25 to October 20.

https://www.businesspost.ie/property/from-psychiatry-to-painting-anna-mckeever-finds-her-voice/