The Artist on the Island, by Pete Hogan

This beautifully illustrated memoir by Pete Hogan is the follow-up to his highly acclaimed The Log of the Molly B. After the adventures of building his own boat and sailing it from Canada down the west coast of the US, through the Panama Canal and across the Atlantic to Ireland, Pete decided to settle down and dedicate his life to his art in the remote surroundings of Achillbeg Island, just south of Achill, County Mayo.

A very different kind of adventure ensued. As the only inhabitant on the island, Pete had to use all his resources to survive the kind of harsh winter experienced in the west of Ireland, while all the time concentrating on his art.

With a touch of Robinson Crusoe, Pete describes in detail what it’s like – physically and mentally – to fend for oneself in a stunningly beautiful, but extremely isolated, environment. With over one hundred full colour plates, The Artist on the Island is a remarkable record of one man’s attempt to forgo modern-day conveniences and social conventions in order to focus on what is truly important.

An Extract from The Artist on the Island

"I was not in the mood for compromise. I wanted to live on an island and make art. If Paul Gauguin could quit his job as a stockbroker and paint pictures on an island in the middle of the Pacific ocean, so could I, but in the west of Ireland. If James Joyce could be an exile in Trieste and ‘forge in the smithy of his soul the uncreated conscience of his race’, then so could I, but on an island in the west of Ireland. If Andy Warhol could become famous from some nightclub in New York, then so could I, but on an island in the west of Ireland. I would be famous, aloof, celebrated and revered – from an island in the west of Ireland. 

Or so I thought. I parked my engineless, gaff-rigged ketch. I unloaded my dreams. I kicked open the door of the house and I settled in. I kept a journal that winter. What follows is based on what I wrote." 

About the Author

Pete Hogan is a well-known visual artist who specialises in paintings of cityscape and seascape. He was born in Ireland and educated at Cistercian College, Roscrea, Trinity College Dublin and Vancouver College of Art. Pete has travelled extensively. He is married to Micaela and they have two children, Clara and Joshua. In 2012 Pete released his much-acclaimed The Log of the Molly B which describes his days as a boat bum when he sailed solo around the world by way of Cape Horn in a boat which he built himself. Pete Hogan has exhibited his paintings with many groups and galleries over the years. His work is contained in numerous public, corporate and private collections all over the world. For more information on Pete and his work see www.phogan.com.