Vanessa Power’s experimental Signs of Power art show debuts this Thursday

This looks incredible.

This Thursday sees the launch of Threesome, by Signs of Power at Hang Tough Gallery in Portobello, Dublin 8. Vanessa Power, under the pseudonym of Signs of Power, has a unique and arresting approach to sign painting that is synonymous to anyone who knows Dublin. Power’s bold typography and lettering convey a contemporary and timeless urban aesthetic. Now this October, Hang Tough Gallery will be showcasing 10 new artworks from Vanessa with her latest solo exhibition - Threesome. Following on from previous shows in Chicago, Belfast, London and Dublin, Threesome demonstrates a further evolution of Power’s art, for the first time combining her renowned typographical approach with gold leaf and everyday objects. Inspired by the work of the Pop art movement artists Robert Indiana and Ed Ruscha, who embraced the vocabulary of post war America signage and harnessed words to explore themes of identity and social injustice, Threesome sees Power use three letter words to elicit a range of responses. Using traditional woodblock typefaces from the National Print Museum as inspiration, and even recreating three-dimensional versions to be used as precise references, each design in Threesome’s large-scale pieces is beautifully crafted directly onto glass using traditional sign-writing gilding techniques. Experimentation is at the heart of Power’s work and this is again evident in her application of materials including Italian 23ct gold leaf, mother of pearl shell and iridescent glitter to create her art before each piece is set against a coloured backdrop. Each is as simple as it is strikingly graphic, and this is an exhibition not to be missed, from an artist who continues to experiment in her search for new forms grounded in traditional skills that were once thought lost. Threesome will run from Thursday October 3 until Thursday October 17 at Hang Tough Gallery, 25 Lennox Street, Portobello Dublin 8. The exhibition will run from 10am to 6pm Monday to Friday and 12pm to 3pm Saturday.