Introduction

Stranger, the new exhibition by Colin Davidson (and his first in Dublin for seven years), comprises six 3-dimensional artworks and is the culmination of five year’s research and studio work by the artist. Davidson has always considered paint as a tactile, viscous, sculptural medium and in these six works, we see him stretch the boundaries of what the medium can do as he takes paint into the realm of sculpture. He refers to these monumental figures as ‘3D paintings’, or ‘paintings you can walk around’, for, not merely sculptures with painted surfaces, they appear as sculptures crafted, not from clay or wax, but from paint. Through a complex process of armature and maquette building (using thickened oil paint), scanning, 3D printing and painting, these oversized figures can be interpreted as unfamiliar, they are indeed ‘strangers’ to the viewer and to the artist.

Colin Davidson: Stranger, Royal Hibernian Academy of Arts, Dublin. 21 November 2025 – 25 January 2026.