Meet The Illustrator Capturing Irish Trad With A Modern Twist: Miles Reilly

Words: Rachel Hannon
Artwork: Miles Reilly

Words: Rachel Hannon
Artwork: Miles Reilly

Smithwick’s wants to connect with communities who are seeking out and re-inventing old Irish traditions. Irish artist and illustrator, Miles Reilly popped up on our radar following his collaborations with The Mary Wallopers. Last Christmas, Miles was commissioned by Smithwicks to capture the essence of Traditional Irish music as part of their new ‘Originals Find Originals’ campaign. Flying home from London, he bounced from pub to pub drawing Dublin’s bustling Trad scene. We caught up with Miles to discuss his approach to creativity and how he captures the spontaneous energy of trad music in his illustrations.

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The Mary Wallopers

It was this approach to art-making that put Miles on a collision course with The Mary Wallopers whose lively and expressive music served as a perfect match for his pen. “During lockdown I was getting into caricatures and thought ‘The Mary Wallopers are a laugh – I’ll draw them.’ Then on one live stream they had an art competition – I sent a sketch of them looking a bit cock-eyed playing instruments and ended up with some pig stickers in the post. Later, Charles asked me to illustrate a songbook, and since then, I’ve been lucky enough to work on several projects with them. They have a really strong creative vision – they give me a lot of freedom but it’s always a collaboration which is a really enjoyable way to work.

Crucial to the strength of their ongoing collaboration is Miles’ ability to convey the experiential quality of a Mary Wallopers gig. His illustrations go beyond the music itself to distill the unique atmosphere of a trad session in full swing. “Obviously they are some craic – there’s nothing like being at a Wallopers gig. Some of my designs were inspired directly by the stuff going on – the lads backstage, staff working in turbo mode to pull pints and fans balancing pints on their heads! I still get a real pang of Irish pride seeing my t-shirt designs out in the wild!”

Smithwick’s wants to connect with communities who are seeking out and re-inventing old Irish traditions. Follow their Instagram for more information and upcoming events.

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