Larry Mcgarry

Living the dreams, (the dark side of creativity).

Midway through another restless night of little-to-no sleep,
I get up, feel my way to the garage in the darkness, rip open a canvass; if I have one, if not it’s a board or even the wall... and go paint. It’s as if my tired eyes are a block to the obvious, the formulaic or even beautiful things. It’s like a high speed - slow motion frenzy. An impulsive brain; half asleep with a billion
captured images to work from. There’s no line to restrict my hands - often not even brushes, just the overwhelming desire to capture something that’s 100% emotionally driven

Sometimes, living a creative life can be heartbreaking. Not because of the lack of security, not because of rejection but because there is a perpetual compromise that is being made. Living creatively is like a temperamental lover. You don’t know what it wants or when it wants it but you do know you have to do it. It feels feverish, uncontrolled and often unforgiving.

The never-ending nightmares range from mildly unsettling to absolutely terrible. I get very affected by the things I see and hear. Especially recurring dreams of growing up in Lenadoon... Lenadoom! Every single day was a struggle for survival.
I’m sure ...

Christian Brothers
Art College, Belfast

Artcetra Gallery, Belfast.
One man show, 'Living the dreams' 2018