“At my cafe, everyone looks busy with their coffee cups, their cigarettes, their little spoons. A choreography of solitude, and yet, clattering togetherness”

Welcome to this exhibition, we really hope you enjoy it

Gav’s Caf is a weekend cafe and supper club run by picture collector and owner. This is a small, curated selection of work taken from the walls of his dining room. The collection is largely made from fine art prints but there are a few original paintings and photography as well.

His collection focuses on a core group of around 14 artists whose work he often revisits and collects - including Stephen Lawlor, Karen Daye-Hutchinson, Karl Hagan, Jackie Crooks, Yoko Akino, Stuart McHarrie, Jonathan Brennan, Helen O’Sullivan, Brian Ballard, May Patsy Chan, Richard Lawlor, Esther O’Kelly, Helen Lavery and Lisa Ballard.

The image notes are written by Gavin himself.

If you’d like to comment, you can at the end - and we’d love to hear what you thought. Thanks for visiting

Man in Black Suit (2024) by Stuart McHarrie

Stuart McHarrie lives in Greenwich, South East London and studied fine art at Central St Martins. He has worked as an artist, art director and illustrator throughout his career, but over the past decade has focused his attention on producing paintings. This is a small profile portrait and it is a recent addition to the cafe

Ecce Homo II by Stephen Lawlor

This is the very last one in this series, which I’m aways dancing about. The print is marked 40 of 40. I like having the first, middle or the last print. "Ecce Homo," meaning "Behold the man" in Latin, refers to the words spoken by Pontius Pilate in the Vulgate translation of the Gospel of John, when he presents a scourged, bound, and thorn-crowned Jesus to a hostile crowd before the crucifixion. This scene, depicting Jesus' suffering, is commonly shown in Christian art as part of cycles illustrating the Passion and life of Christ, often following the Flagellation of Christ, the crowning with thorns, and the mocking of Jesus. These scenes are frequently combined in artistic depictions. This one is as you’ll see, part of a growing collection of work by cafe regular, Mr Stephen Lawlor (RE)

Iris (2020) by Lisa Ballard

This is a beautiful watercolour, painted by Lisa in 2020. We bought it to brighten the cafe during the height of lockdown restrictions during the covid pandemic, when we were in a deep depression and had shut up shop. It is small but beautiful and it is a rare piece in that we move it around the cafe depending on how we feel. I’m always impressed looking at it and knowing that Lisa donated all the money she made from the sale of this collection, to Black Lives Matter after the killing of George Perry Floyd Jr.

Rain (2019) by Karl Hagan

I’m a new collector of the work by Karl Hagan, and by accident really. I found this painting in an online gallery, and it turns out his studio is near to my home. This piece is titled Rain and it’s a complex painting of a figure under a beautiful red umbrella, held for him by a male torso in the top-right heavens of the canvas. A lot is drawn from works of classical painters. There is a lot of downward pressure on him, you can see his hands holding his face, and despite his rock and roll hairdo, he seems stressed out by the monsoon, the downpour and everything that is weighing down on him.

Was I Awake or Sleeping by Stephen Lawlor

This is the very first print we bought by Stephen Lawlor, who I haven’t really told you much about. It’s from the RUA exhibition years ago. Stephen Lawlor (born 1958 in Dublin) has been to the cafe for his lunch and we love him and his work. He is an accomplished artist, known for his work in painting, printmaking, and recently, bronze sculpture. He graduated with honors from Dublin's National College of Art and Design (1980-1983) and taught at Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology during the 1980s. His early work focused on the figure of the horse, which he explored through various mediums, including drawings, etchings, lithographs, and monotypes. Lawlor has exhibited solo shows in Ireland, England, and the U.S., and his work is housed in private collections worldwide. He was elected an associate member of the Royal Society of Painter Printmakers (RE) in London in 2016 and co-founded the International Academic Printmaking Alliance (IAPA) at the Central Academy of Fine Art in Beijing the same year.

And England's Dreaming by Stephen Lawlor

I know, I know, what can I say - it’s him again. This is a magnificent print it really is, it strikes everyone and often interrupts their coffee or morning pastry. It sparks all sorts of chats and I love to look at her after I close up and am clearing away tables.

Poppies by Karen Daye-Hutchinson

This hangs out in the hall and you see it when you are coming into the cafe, it’s a large piece by Karen Daye-Hutchinson, I’ve collected her work for nearly 20 years. In some ways she is everywhere in the room, I have moody dark ones, small ones, big ones, some as big as your head.

Night Society (2023) Richard Lawlor

Richard is a terrific printmaker and a member of The Graphic Studio Dublin. He recently graduated in Fine Art print from Dun Laoghaire College, Design and Technology and has been in several group shows since. He specialises in copper plate etching and his work is mainly figurative. I haven’t met Richard, but he pops up a couple of times in my collection, this is the first on show in this exhibition. Keep an eye out below for his really lovely print titled ‘The Warren’. His figures are reflective of historic characters from film stills and photography.

Untitled by Jonathan Brennan

First thing to say, is sorry to Jonathan and that this work is titled, I just can’t see what it says. There are four or five pieces around the room by him, and I’ve included a pair in this exhibition that are much loved in the collection. Jonathan Brennan’s work is about place: architectural and urban spaces as well as what is traditionally referred to as landscape, and how both interact. He is drawn to the less obvious, the neglected and the abandoned – alleyways, culverted rivers, wastelands, abandoned spaces and objects. His cyanotype prints are records of what he terms ‘field trips’ to these places (that often hide in plain sight). Brennan gathers emblematic plant specimens, often wildflowers and ‘weeds’ that thrive in impoverished soil, and places them on to light sensitive paper which he exposes to sunlight.

Kevin (2013) by Karen Daye-Hutchinson & Helen Lavery

This stone lithograph was created as a collaborative project in 2013, showcasing hybrid printmaking in the form of traditional works on paper and bespoke book arts - as well as a 3 x 2m hand drawn mono prints. This work is massive. I actually call him Frank and had to remind myself of the actual title. He will always be Frank to me. Anyway whatever he is called, he is 1 of 12.

Watercolour (2020) by Lisa Ballard

This is the second watercolour I’ve included by Lisa, it is a beautifully subtle work - again bought in lockdown when there wasn’t any colour or customers - and artists were, like everyone else, having a hard time making a living. I love this image and how it reminds me to look forward to brighter times.

Life is a Bowl of Lychees by Yoko Akino

This is a beautiful etching with gold leaf and is a medium size at 41h x 46w cm. It is the most recent work to arrive and is a first for us to have work by Yoko Akino in the dining room. It is away at the moment being framed but I wanted to include it in this exhibition, it is a very special print. Sometimes in the cafe, I cook food from books by the amazing Ching He Huang, and pretentiously, set the table with faded old rice bowls I got in the Oxfam up the Dublin Road. They remind me of this

Swell by Esther O'Kelly

Customers love this work and the pop of colour it adds. Esther O'Kelly is a visual artist from Wexford, based in Belfast. Primarily working in paint, She graduated from The National College of Art and Design with an honours degree in Visual Communications, O'Kelly's painting responds intuitively and spontaneously to the landscape - which you can find loud and clear in this piece.

The Sleeping and the Dead by Karen Daye-Hutchinson & Helen Lavery

Parenthesis was created as a collaborative project in 2013, showcasing hybrid printmaking in the form of traditional works on paper and bespoke book arts - as well as a 3 x 2m hand drawn mono prints. From traditional techniques to more exploratory methods, Karen Daye-Hutchinson and Helen Lavery are ambassadors in this field of working. Each artist has unique qualities, which contribute to the effect of a fragmentary mind at work.

Threes by Jonathan Brennan

I love the tone of this work by Jonathan, who as you’ll maybe have read above is often attracted to the overlooked, the forgotten, and the abandoned and discarded. I love that a lot about Jonathan’s work, seen at its best in his recent exhibition ‘Daylighting – Work in Progress‘ which took Belfast’s rivers as a point of departure, looking at: issues around ecology (how we experience/manage rivers in urban areas); river ownership/maintenance (rivers diverted/culverted by private ventures); river narratives and metaphors (rivers as a way of talking about other things, under the surface).

Puritan by Stephen Lawlor

I’ve included this work as she sits just outside the kitchen and sort of watches over all the bustle of a busy service. There is something about her, I assume she is a member of a group of English Protestants of the late 16th and 17th centuries who regarded the Reformation of the Church under Elizabeth I as incomplete and sought to simplify and regulate forms of worship. She is the sort of person that tells young children to eat their greens up and not play with their spaghetti

Mountains (2020) by Lisa Ballard

This is the third and final work in this collection by Lisa, and it is an oil on wooden panel. The colours have to be seen and it’s best looked at from across the table or on the way into the cafe. It is captivating, that word is overused, I know - but this painting really is. I think it is based on a view from an airplane flying over a Californian mountain range. I love it, it will never leave the cafe collection this one. Like all good parents, I don’t have a favourite painting - but if the kitchen went up in a puff of smoke, I’d grab this one if I had to do a runner.

1779 by Stephen Lawlor

These two are a laugh, they are hung high up on the wall, above the door that brings you into the cafe. They remind me most of all, of a Sunday when Stephen and Catherine came for lunch and brought this pair with them. I don’t know that much about them, but they watch over diners, judging you for having a side of chips or ordering a double espresso. I love them

Red Tea Pot & Iron (2012) by Brian Ballard

Born in 1943, Brian Ballard studied in his home town at Belfast College of Art and went on to further studies at Liverpool College of Art. Best known for his modern treatment of the traditional genres of the still life, the nude and the landscape, and his distinctive use of bold yet evocative colour, he now works mainly in Belfast and on Inishfree Island off the coast of Donegal. I like Brian’s work and how he often revisits the same objects or scene. The work I have in the collection for example each have an old clothes iron in them, like the one in this oil. I sometimes bump into Brian in the vegetable shop or Marks & Spencer and smile about the story behind this painting. We got an invite to his sunny garden party which had a string quartet playing, nice canapés, and way too much wine. This came home in a taxi that afternoon, and it always reminds me of that day we hung up our aprons and headed round to his house. It was great

Head (2019) by Karl Hagan

This isn’t a great photo I know (my fault), but I had to include him. Head (2019) is the second painting I’ve included by Karl, it’s a small canvas and a study for his huge painting ‘Procession (Friday of Sorrows)’ 2023 which was part of ‘The Space Between’ exhibition with Charlie Scott. Keep your eye out for Charlie later in the year, he is having a solo exhibition I’ve heard. Karl shares a studio building with Charlie I think, I like visiting and seeing what he’s working on.

Packed by May Patsy Chan

Where do I start about this one, actually it’s the only photograph in the collection at the minute and it was taken by my good friend May on one of her trips to Hong Kong. It has the wonderful mark 1 of 20. Few people actually ever clap eyes on it, as it hangs in the kitchen and only the staff get to see it when they’re busy frying chips or making your tea. That’s a shame really, so here it is on a rare outing and for all to see.

Even Closer by Helen O'Sullivan

This came to the cafe directly from the artist after I asked about her work in the 143rd Royal Ulster Academy Annual Exhibition which has just ended. This isn’t that particular piece but is similar to the rest in the series of work and the one Helen had in the exhibition. It has just arrived back from being framed and is currently in the main dining room. I love the illusion it creates and how it plays with the viewer, what looks incredibly simple shouldn’t fool you and the precision in this work, and the colours are really very beautiful.

Red Iron & Roses (2006) by Brian Ballard

Here is the clothes iron I was telling you about, back in this much larger of Brian’s work. Tragically this piece has hopped off the wall several times actually, and the frame is badly damaged as you might be able to see. It was a startling event and almost caused several coronaries in the cafe when it last smashed onto the floor. Those of you looking closely will see it is the middle print, and has the magic number of 5 of 10

Untitled (2017) by Karen Daye-Hutchinson

One of Karen’s rare oils, this hangs out in a quiet corner with some works by Brian Ballard and Richard Lawlor. The make a nice group, they’re sort of the cool kids out on their own. This is a lovely little canvas, the painting is of Venice - a city where coffee and cafes is taken very seriously. It reminds me to pull my socks up and always have pressed linen napkins.

The Warren by Richard Lawlor

This print was exhibited at the Royal Ulster Academy exhibition and by Richard Lawlor who I’ve told you about. The colours and darkness in this print really catch the onlooker. It’s really is a beautiful composition.

Bench (2017) by Jackie Crooks

This is a large print and one of our favourites in this collection. It’s a nice note to end on, I love looking at this print and it is full of interesting things to see. The size and colours used are great and a maybe rarer work by Jackie Crooks. This one also has my favourite and is number 1 from an edition of 4. It’s a large print and you can’t miss it, it is a regular favourite in the dining room

The End

Thanks for visiting and having a look at these images, they are shared in the hope they will inspire and make people see the value in the art that surrounds us, even in cafes where we go about our day to day lives. Please sign the guest comments if you’d like to leave a comment or review

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