Cristín Leach

Writer, Art Critic, Broadcaster

Books

Negative Space

Cristín Leach weaves words and art with an unravelling of self that comes when a marriage breaks. A new kind of memoir from one of Ireland’s leading art critics, Negative Space examines the importance of art and words to help anchor you in a world turned upside down. An Irish Times best seller, a Claire Byrne Show (RTÉ Radio 1) and The Last Word (Today FM) Best Non-Fiction book of 2022.

From Ten till Dusk

From Ten till Dusk delves into the archives and returns with a multiform narrative that brings key personalities and events in the Royal Hibernian Academy’s remarkable 200 year history to life. Through historical fiction, diary entries, critico-fiction, letters and poetry, Leach tells a dramatic and tumultuous story. A thebookshop.ie book of 2023 & a Sunday Times Christmas Book pick.

TO THE LINE (MOBILE CUBE POEM), 2023

To the Line (mobile cube poem) 2023

To the Line is a mobile cube poem made in response to the paintings in the Big Crush series by Cork artist Deirdre Frost, exhibited at the Kilkenny Arts Festival in August 2023.

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About

About image
Cristín Leach is an Irish art critic, broadcaster and author of the bestselling memoir Negative Space (Merrion Press, 2022). Her art criticism has appeared in Sunday Times Ireland since 2003, and on RTÉ radio, television, and digital services since 1998. Her collection of historical fiction, poetry, essays and other forms of expanded art writing From Ten Till Dusk (RHA, 2023) was published to mark the 200th anniversary of the Royal Hibernian Academy of Arts in Dublin.

Her short stories and essays have been published in Winter Papers 3, 5 and 7, The Mersey Review, flash competition anthologies, and broadcast on RTÉ Radio 1 as part of Keywords series 1 and 2. For RTÉ Lyric FM, she presented the four-part radio documentary series Ireland Portrayed (2020) and co-presented the New York Festivals award-winning series Through the Canvas (2018). A contributing writer for Irish Arts Review, RTÉ Culture, and VAI VAN, she has written monographs and essays for gallery, collection, and artist catalogues since 2016.

She is an occasional guest lecturer and experienced mentor who has worked with artists, writers, and corporate clients since 2013. She is a regular host for panel discussions, festival events, and public interviews, in-person and remote. Her editioned mobile cube poem, To the Line (2023) is part of the OPW Art Collection.

Photo credit: Clare Keogh


selected Portfolio

Reviews & Recommendations

 

As art critic for the Sunday Times for almost 20 years, Cristín has combined expert knowledge of the visual arts with an ability to write about them in a clear and engaging way - an almost unique blend in the Irish media. As a columnist Cristín is adept at analysing topical and controversial issues, using her superb writing skills to inform, explain but also entertain. An extract from her book Negative Space was one of the most read articles on the Sunday Times website in 2022.

John Burns
The Sunday Times, Commissioning Editor
 

Cristín’s wonderfully crafted artists’ interview was a festival highlight at Light Moves Festival 2021. Her communication, research and delivery was authentic and engaging and conveyed genuine curiosity for the artist and their work. Cristín seamlessly engaged both the live audience and those experiencing the event via live-steaming. I would work with Cristín again in a heartbeat.

Mary Wycherley
Co-founder and Curator Light Moves Festival, Choreographer and Film Director
 

She is uncommonly good at writing about being embodied... Negative Space is the record of a writer remaking life and language, knowing they will always be strangely matched.

Brian Dillon
The Irish Times
 

There are few books that capture so gracefully and so truthfully the way in which art and life weave and bleed together. Negative Space is a beautiful, profound, unique book.

Sara Baume
Artist and Author
 

Leach is, with apologies to all others ploughing a similar furrow, the leading Irish fine art critic. She knows her onions,... No surprise then that this memoir is a work of art in and of itself.

Pat Carty
Hot Press
 

In this extraordinary book, Cristín Leach sketches a vivid sequence of vignettes that build towards a meditative portrait of art, voice, loss and growth.

Doireann Ní Ghríofa
Poet and Author
 

I adored Negative Space. It is a personal Ways of Seeing for twenty-first-century women... a compelling personal story steeped in art... essential reading.

Edel Coffey
Author and Journalist
 

An unflinching self-exploration of a woman at various major life stages, not to mention a refreshing portrait of a very modern Irish marriage breakdown, divorce and family break-up.

Tanya Sweeney
Irish Independent
 

From Ten till Dusk... is a joy. Taking an experimental format, it draws out, and frequently fictionalises the threads that run through the lives of those involved, to create an eclectic portrait of a place, the times, and the people who make the art.

Gemma Tipton
The Irish Times
 
 

Events

Past Events

TitleDateLocation
Maynooth University Visiting Writers Series14 Mar 2024English Department, Maynooth, County Kildare, Ireland
The Water’s Way Doreen Cunningham and Alice Kinsella in conversation with Cristín Leach11 Nov 2023Dún Laoghaire, Dublin, A96 H283, Ireland
From Ten Till Dusk: In Conversation at Dublin Book Festival09 Nov 202315 Ely Place, Dublin 2, Ireland
From Ten Till Dusk Book Launch25 Oct 202315 Ely Place, Dublin 2, Dublin, Ireland
Negative Space: Guest Artist Talk - Lodestar Summer School15 Aug 2023Janseniusstraat 1, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
In conversation: with Deirdre Frost at Kilkenny Arts Festival12 Aug 2023Kilkenny Castle, Kilkenny Abbey, County Westmeath, Ireland
Coffee & Chat: with Brian Dillon about his book of essays, Affinities, at West Cork Literary Festival13 Jul 2023Bantry House, Kinathfineen, County Cork, Ireland
In conversation: with John Banville about his novel, The Singularities, at West Cork Literary Festival12 Jul 2023The Maritime Hotel, The Quay, Kinathfineen, Bantry, Cork, Ireland
Negative Space: Hinterland Festival of Literature and Arts25 Jun 2023Courthouse, Headfort Rd, Maudlin, Kells, County Meath, Ireland
Negative Space: MoLi First Fridays06 Jan 2023MoLi Museum of Literature Ireland
Negative Space: Dingle Literary Festival20 Nov 2022An Diseart, Chapel, Dingle, Kerry, Ireland
Negative Space: Greywood Arts Bookclub18 Oct 2022Greywood Arts, Main Street, Killeagh, County Cork, Ireland
Negative Space: ISLA Literary Festival14 Oct 2022Trinity Centre for Literary and Cultural Translation, Trinity College Dublin
Negative Space: West Cork Literary Festival10 Jul 2022The Maritime Hotel, Bantry, West Cork, Ireland
Negative Space: Belfast Book Festival12 Jun 2022The Crescent Arts Centre, 2-4 University Rd, Belfast
Negative Space Dublin launch26 May 2022The Gutter Bookshop, Cow's Ln, Temple Bar, Dublin 8, D08 DK27
Negative Space Cork launch19 May 2022Dubray Books, 83-85 Patrick's Street, Cork, Ireland

Contact

  • Dublin, Leinster, Ireland

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