Aisling Drennan
A London Irish Story as told to Matthew Dunne-Miles
“Riverdance became a cultural ambassador and put Ireland on the map. I toured for almost ten years, full time and part time, and travelled to over 400 cities in 43 countries over five continents.”
"I'm from Lisdoonvarna in County Clare, which is really a beautiful County. I'm obviously biased but I love the wild abundance. I grew up right on the edge of The Burren, which is a National Park and the Atlantic Ocean was right there. I loved the freedom of it, me and my sisters were always out running around.
It's a very touristy area and my parents ran a hotel. We grew up working there and it was the first time that I got to meet different cultures and nationalities. Clare is known as a very traditional county for music, dance and song so every evening, during the summer, we would have a trad band playing. Me and my sisters were rolled out to dance for the tourists and we would be arguing with each other every week before we did it. It was my first introduction to showing a part of my culture to people who were coming to Ireland to see it. It was a real eye opener looking back.
Growing up in Ireland in the 1980s, everyone did Irish dancing – it was like part of the school curriculum!
I then joined an Irish dancing school and went through all the classes, all the competitions, and the rigmarole that goes along with it. I loved it but never thought I would make a career out of it.
“Irish dancing had never been considered in a different format; it was always following on from what it had been before for aeons.”
Irish dancing wasn't "cool". Then, of course, Riverdance came along in 1994. I remember sitting on the couch watching Eurovision and it blew my mind. It was so different to the ringlets, costumes and white socks that you would typically wear. All the girls wore tights, and they were using their arms!
Riverdance became a cultural ambassador and put Ireland on the map for another artistic reason, which I thought was amazing. I auditioned when I was 16 and got in. I toured for almost ten years, full time and part time, and travelled to over 400 cities in 43 countries over five continents. I was so young when I started, and I had to grow up fast. My parents weren't there to get me ready for rehearsals or to pack my suitcase before we got on another plane.
I was very clear about what I wanted to do – I wanted to get into Riverdance and then go to art school.
“When I went out on tour, I always had my sketchbook and my paint box in the suitcase.
I would go see the galleries or museums and try to connect myself with the art world.”
In a way, Riverdance wasn't just a career, it was also an education that was the basis for my art career. I got to see things like Frida Kahlo's house in Mexico City, which was extremely moving. When I got married in 2019, all of my friends from the show were there and we performed Riverdance. That's probably my farewell to it, which is really nice.
After touring, I did my BA Fine Art in Galway. I had grown up with stories of relatives who 'went to London' and hadn't wanted to be part of that conversation. It always seemed bleak. But the Master’s degree I wanted to do at the time wasn't available in Ireland, so I decided: "Okay, let's give London a shot".
“Central Saint Martin's was the only art school I applied to and was accepted onto their Masters in Fine Art programme, I couldn't believe it.
I remember getting the letter and asking my Dad to open it because I was just too nervous.”
I've been here for nearly 10 years and London is definitely home now. I work full time in my studio in south London selling my original abstract paintings and prints through my website, studio visits or with galleries.
London has been good to me, it’s given me a lot in terms of my art career. Last year I won an arts bursary award from the Women's Irish Network, Mayday magazine listed me as a top contemporary Irish artist to watch earlier this year, and recently I was Fujitsu’s featured artist for an international media campaign.
There is loads of opportunity here however, sometimes I have a love-hate relationship with London because it demands a lot of you. But at the same time, it's so exciting & compelling. Once you find your nice little algorithm, it just really works."
To find out more about Aisling's artwork, you can visit www.aislingdrennan.com or visit @aisling_drennan_art on Instagram.
