Derry-based artist explores concept of Pareidolia in major solo show this May

Rachael Johnson returns to her roots with a collection inspired by travel and the human mind

A solo exhibition of new and retrospective paintings by Derry-based artist Rachael Johnson opens in The Strule Art Gallery, Omagh at 7.00pm on Friday, May 1 2026 and runs until May 30. Admission is free.

Rachael, educated in Enniskillen, left home in 1980 to study Fine Arts and spent some years travelling and working abroad. She returned to Ireland in 1990's and worked as an illustrator and community artist in Dublin, where she also began to develop and exhibit personal artwork inspired by her travels.

Rachael uses mixed media to create collage paintings on canvas. Creative material can include oil and water-based paints, inks, pastels and charcoal, textured & handmade paper, organic material, fabrics & natural fibres, metal, stone, wood and glass.

Rachael currently lives in Derry and has been working as an exhibiting artist and HCPC registered Art Psychotherapist in Northern Ireland for over 20 years.

Recent exhibitions include the Clinton Gallery, Enniskillen, The Red Stables Gallery, Dublin and The Laneway Gallery, Cork. She is a member of Visual Artists Ireland (VAI).

“Pareidolia is the human tendency to seek meaning in elusive imagery. I don't know in advance what I’m going to paint. I apply, rearrange, remove and reapply layers of colour and texture with no direction in mind until a particular curve or colour resonates with something forgotten, hidden or lost."