Working from a makeshift home studio, Figgis began sharing her paintings on Twitter and Instagram, a move that led to her breakthrough moment in 2014. American artist Richard Prince discovered her work online, became her first collector, and purchased several paintings. This pivotal connection led to her work being exhibited at Prince's Fulton Ryder space in New York and the publication of her first artist book, allowing Figgis to pay off her student debt and leave her day job. Prince also introduced her to prominent gallerist Almine Rech, who began representing her in 2015.
Artistic Mastery & Market Recognition
Signature Elements & Techniques
Figgis's paintings are immediately recognisable for their macabre yet humorous reinterpretation of art history. Drawing on Old Master painters including Diego Velázquez, Francisco Goya, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, François Boucher, and James Ensor, she transforms canonical works into unsettling dreamscapes. An avid reader of Gothic literature, Figgis cites authors like Edgar Allan Poe and Oscar Wilde as inspirations for the dark, dramatic undercurrents coursing through her work.
Her technique centres on pouring and dribbling acrylic paint onto flat-lying canvases, allowing gravity and fluidity to shape the image. She delights in the medium's unpredictability, explaining that "the addiction for me is the medium's unpredictability." Colours are vibrant, viscous, and often glossy, whilst forms emerge from puddles and rivulets of acrylic that coagulate into recognisable 18th-century characters and settings. The result is a balance of figuration and abstraction, with subjects rendered in what critics have termed "broad strokes, literally," exhibiting swimming, coalescing flesh tones and gowns.
Fine detail and realism are eschewed in favour of drips and swirls that conjure what Figgis terms "strange incarnations dragged up out of the paint itself." These incarnations hover between whimsy and menace. Many figures sport hollow eyes, toothy grins, or mask-like faces, appearing like animated corpses or surreal clowns in period dress. This ghostly aesthetic has been linked to Figgis's fascination with the afterlife of images, as if someone spilled water on history's finest portraits, leaving them as diluted versions of their former selves.
The Creative Process: From Vision to Recognition
Figgis works primarily in acrylic and occasionally oil on canvas, typically at small to mid-sizes. Rather than carefully delineating forms, she pours and dribbles paint onto flat-lying canvases, allowing gravity to shape the image. This approach reflects influences from both Pop Art and classical portraiture. In fact, Figgis cites Pop icons like Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol as inspirations, alongside British painter Patrick Caulfield's black-outlined colour fields.
The cartoon-like aspect of Figgis's faces owes a debt to Hergé's Tintin comics, which she explicitly emulates. Simultaneously, she has long admired classical Western portraitists such as Sir Joshua Reynolds and Old Masters like El Greco, even collecting 17th and 18th-century portraits. This mixture of high and low influences informs her pared-down aesthetic.
Crucially, Figgis uses this distortion to comment on power and gender in historical art. She is acutely aware that traditional portraits flattered the elite and reinforced social hierarchies. Her work pointedly subverts these tropes. Women, in particular, are no longer passive decorative subjects in her paintings; they become mischievous protagonists. Figgis has stated that in reworking Rococo scenes she wanted to "give a voice and stage for women to be seen as free and opulent and less restricted," allowing them to be the stars of the paintings rather than mere objects for the male gaze.
Evolution of Figgis's Practice
Figgis's rise has been swift. Her U.S. debut solo show Good Morning, Midnight at Half Gallery (New York) in 2014 garnered positive notice and was followed by All the Light We Cannot See (2015) at Almine Rech in London, marking the start of an ongoing representation. She has since held solo exhibitions across Europe, the U.S., and Asia. Notably, her first museum solo came in 2023 with Drama Party at M WOODS Museum in Beijing, a mid-career retrospective of more than 40 works.
She currently lives and works in County Wicklow, Ireland, painting from a dedicated studio on the Irish coast. Her work is now featured in major collections including the Pérez Art Museum Miami, the Smart Museum of Art (Chicago), the Bass Museum (Miami), and the Aishti Foundation, Beirut. Over roughly a decade, Figgis has transformed from a self-described housewife painting in her kitchen to an internationally exhibited artist with gallery representation on multiple continents and participation in prestigious museum shows.
Why Collectors Invest in Genieve Figgis
Investment Value Proposition
Demand for Figgis's work has grown dramatically since the mid-2010s, establishing her as one of the most collectible Irish contemporary artists. On the primary market, her paintings have commanded prices in the mid-five-figures to low-six-figures. At her 2021 New York solo with Almine Rech, prices ranged from approximately £40,000 for smaller canvases to £140,000 for larger works, with the show selling out completely.
The secondary market reflects similarly strong performance. At Phillips Hong Kong in 2019, A Social Portrait (2014) exceeded its high estimate. Her auction record currently stands at approximately £80,000 for The Ballroom (2015), set at Sotheby's London in 2019. Auction results consistently show steady demand, with many works selling above estimate.
Market Context & Performance
Figgis's position within the contemporary art market hierarchy is strengthened by critical acclaim. Respected critics including Adrian Searle of The Guardian have commented that Figgis "conjures up a world that is both whimsical and disquieting," noting that her distorted aristocrats "challenge conventional notions of beauty." New Yorker critic Jerry Saltz lauded the "darkly comic, fever-dream quality" of her paintings and their "unique visual language," finding them "unsettling and captivating."
Curators have similarly responded to her work's conceptual depth. At the M WOODS exhibition in Beijing, curators Qi Yuanlin and Deng Yingying remarked on the dreamlike, phantom quality of her figures, likening them to "haunting phantoms or whimsical clowns" creating an atmosphere of fading illusions. This blend of critical consensus indicates robust institutional support for Figgis's market trajectory.
Collector Benefits
Figgis's art offers collectors multiple access points. Whilst original paintings command substantial prices with limited availability on the open market due to high demand, she has also released limited-edition prints that provide more accessible entry points. These prints maintain the distinctive qualities of her painting style whilst broadening her collector base.
For collectors, Figgis represents both cultural significance and intelligent investment. Her paintings dialogue with art history whilst making it feel unsettlingly new, offering what Artnet writer Taylor Dafoe described as work that "regularly replicates the look and feel of eras past, only to deconstruct the folly of it all." This ability to balance horror and humour, tradition and subversion, continues to captivate both elite collectors and emerging buyers alike.
The Collector FAQ
What makes Genieve Figgis's work distinctive?
Figgis's paintings are immediately recognisable for their macabre reinterpretation of Old Master and Rococo imagery, rendered in dripping, viscous acrylic that creates ghostly, distorted figures. Her work balances dark Gothic sensibility with vibrant colour and dark humour.
Where can I view Genieve Figgis works?
Figgis is represented by Almine Rech and her works appear in major collections including the Pérez Art Museum Miami, the Smart Museum of Art (Chicago), and the Bass Museum (Miami). Works are available through select galleries specialising in contemporary art.
What is the investment potential for Genieve Figgis works?
Figgis has demonstrated consistent market growth since 2014, with primary market paintings ranging from mid-five to low-six figures and strong secondary market performance. Her auction record and sold-out exhibitions indicate sustained collector demand.
How do I authenticate Genieve Figgis works?
Authentication should be verified through established galleries, with proper provenance documentation and gallery certificates. Works should be acquired through reputable sources with transparent authentication processes.
What influences Genieve Figgis's artistic style?
Figgis draws on Old Masters including Goya, Velázquez, and Fragonard, whilst also citing Gothic literature (Poe, Wilde), contemporary female painters (Jenny Saville, Marlene Dumas), and Pop Art influences. Her technique reflects both classical portraiture and modern cartoon aesthetics.