An art exhibition with a difference opens in Waterford on Friday. Mondo Topless is the first solo showing by local artist John O'Connell and is also, it is fair to assume, the first exhibition in Waterford of paintings based on the Sun newspaper's page three girls.
Although still only 22, O'Connell has been working in the arts for eight years, having begun as an apprentice in the New Ross studio of the late sculptor, Seamus Furlong, at the age of 14.
The commissions he worked on there included a bronze chess set for the U2 singer Bono. O'Connell later studied special effects and model-making at Dun Laoghaire College of Art and Design before beginning a career in painting.
For the past 12 months, he has worked alongside the burgeoning community of artists and craftspeople at the Salvage Shop in Waterford.
Although he finds his work "hard to classify", his paintings combine pop art, cartoon art, action paintings and photomontage, covering a diverse range of subjects from celebrity portraits to religious iconography.
And, of course, page three girls. "It's very eye-catching, straightforward imagery," he says of the newspaper photographs which provide the inspiration for his work. "It's just something I like and it grabs your attention straight away. I mean there's nothing more eye-catching than a naked lady."
Invitations to the exhibition have been going out in recent weeks and the reaction has been very positive so far, he says, although "one or two" people have complained that the idea is in bad taste.
He plans to continue working in Waterford for the foreseeable future, having lived in Dublin for a time. "There are a lot more openings here. I don't think I would have got an exhibition together in Dublin."
John is not the first creative member of the family. His grandfather, Michael O'Connell, is the well-known landscape painter, and his cousin, Eilis O'Connell, the Cork-based sculptor, will open Friday's exhibition.
The Minister of State at the Office of Public Works, Mr Martin Cullen, is also to attend.
Mondo Topless runs until October 15th.