“Take a Closer Look”, 2024

NODOK 2024, Dokumentationszentrum für moderne Kunst, Niederösterreich, Austria

Take a Closer Look is a new body of work exploring waterways throughout Ireland and Austria. Duffy extracts samples of plant life along these locations, preparing them on glass slides, before presenting his findings under his microscope for examination. The resulting sealed glass slides inform his vibrant air bubbled paintings, dripping sculptures, mapped installations and otherworldly photographs. These enlarged artworks of microscopic details become a documentation of the survival of species in deteriorating, recovering and evolving eco-systems. Take a Closer Look homes in on the abuse of synthetic fertilizers on the land resulting in contaminated waterways and algae pollution. This is subsequently a commentary on the controversial sourcing of phosphates and other natural resources from Western Sahara, a place in which Duffy has a strong affiliation with.