Cross, Dorothy (1956– )

Irish post-modernist artist who uses found objects to create assemblages and installations that explore issues relating to gender and authority. Cross emerged as a significant force in Irish art with her exhibition Ebb held at the Douglas Hyde Gallery, Trinity College, Dublin, in 1988. She has established an international reputation and represented Ireland at the Venice Biennale, Italy, in 1993.

Born in Cork, Cross studied art there and in England, the Netherlands, and the USA. Works such as Shark Lady in a Balldress (1988; Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery of Modern Art, Dublin) employ a Surrealist approach to create a complex web of references and symbolism through which she aims to deconstruct myths surrounding male and female identity. The waning power of the Catholic Church in modern Ireland has also featured as a theme in her art. A continuing concern with allegory is evident in her more recent work, which takes the snake as its theme.