Cian Kavanagh
My project How I See explores the concept of Pareidolia. This term is where the brain looks for familiarity out of the unknown. From trees people might see humans or animals, from clouds- faces shapes. This is a fight or flight response where one tries to distinguish friend or foe.
This project will examine how we as people look at random abstract things and try to make sense of it, e.g., spilled coffee might make the image of a body, or a cloud could look like a rabbit. We see things that are familiar to us in these objects, even though they are not there. People walking by the photographs must interact with them. In essence what really gives something meaning is not what something but how people react to it and where it is plays a role in shaping that image.
From something as plain and boring and meaningless as a plastic bag I created these works. They prove that no matter what the mind looks at it will find ways to interact with the object
Cian Kavanagh is an emerging multimedia artist based in Co Wicklow. His work features different media such as drawing, digital drawing, video editing and photography. He admires how early Christian Art used bold stimulating colours. This has led him to use bright bold colours where the finished product is powerful and graphical. His inspiration comes from how the mind plays with shapes and figures through chaos. Some examples include distortions in nature, water, or stones. This appeals to him as the mind is stimulated and he can push the boundaries through his art. He participated in IADT’s **Place Project** (IMMA Studios 2022) and recently has exhibited in **Mud Between the Toes** (2025) at Pallas Projects/Studios.
