Elaine Byrne is an artist who works multimodally, primarily with video, sculpture and photography. Her research-based practice examines overlooked histories, historical texts and artworks as a platform to mobilize history as it relates to current political and social concerns. Giving prominence to language her methodology often uses the interview as a way to confront difficult legal or civic issues.
Since graduating from M.A.Vis (DIT) in 2010 she has shown internationally in Europe, Mexico and USA. She was awarded the Rubinstein fellowship at the Whitney Independent study program in New York in 2015 and the programs' political agenda consolidated her practice as an artist dealing with urgent contemporary political issues. Since 2017 she has been engaged at looking at the issue of borders, where she has particularly focused on contested spaces in the Arctic. This has led her to be awarded three separate residencies in the arctic and a commission by the Hugh Lane Gallery. She is currently a PhD candidate in Film and Media at Temple University, Philadelphia, receiving the Graduate Funding award in 2019. She defends in Spring 2023
She has had solo shows not only at Kevin Kavanagh Gallery, but also at Limerick City Gallery, Oonagh Young Gallery, UAM(Mexico), Montoro21(Rome), ISCP(NY) and Slought (Philadelphia). Group shows include at the Hugh Lane, Douglas Hyde, Visual Carlow, Rubin Foundation(NY), and most recently in Vienna.
She has won many awards including RHA Curtin O'Donough photography prize as well as the 8th Arte Laguna prize (Venice) and the Combat art prize (Milan). In addition, she was awarded the Arts Council Bursary award in 2022 and the Project Funding award in 2014.
Her work is in public collections such as the Crawford Gallery, The Arts Council Council of Ireland, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Rosenbach Museum and Library (Philadelphia), Office of Public Works, Irish Department of Foreign Affairs, Galway University Hospital, Highlanes Municipal Gallery, PwC (London), Donald and Shelly Rubin Collection (New York), Centre of Fine Art Photography (Colorado).
She is a consulting artist to Creative Capital (New York) and teaches at Sotheby's Institute of Art and Temple University.