Chicago honour for artist Liam O’Neill

Renowned West Kerry artist Liam O’Neill, fresh from a successful exhibition at Sheen Falls Lodge alongside works by artists such as Warhol and Banksy, will travel to Chicago to receive the 2025 Visual Arts award from the Irish Books, Art & Music organisation. As part of the iBAM Festival, he will exhibit new paintings and sculptures and deliver an on-stage presentation in Irish, discussing his work and reading from his book Riastáil. Having once dreaded public speaking, he now approaches it with humour, quoting Steve MacDonagh’s remark that most people aren’t listening anyway. After decades dedicated to painting, his recent move into sculpture has sparked unexpected demand, prompting him to wryly observe that it has only taken him 40 years to become an overnight success.