Matthew McCabe
MC1R variant phenotype, 2019
Oil on canvas, 70 x 50 cm
This is a painting of the artist’s son and his incredible orange-coloured hair. Red hair is linked to a variation in the MC1R gene sequence that reduces the amount of melanin in the skin. This allows more UV light to penetrate and activate vitamin D synthesis. Ireland has the world’s highest percentage (approximately 10%) of ‘People With Red Hair’ (PWRH). It remains socially acceptable to single out PWRH because of their physical appearance. The look of defiance in his son’s expression is not unintentional
Related content:
-
Matthew Thompson
Andrew John Hozier-Byrne, 2018
-
Niamh Smith
Home, Soft Focus Life, Cocooning, 2020
-
Nicholas Benedict Robinson
Dr Maeve Robinson, Family Planning Doctor and Educator, 2020
-
Patrick Bolger
Max, My Boy, 2020