Background

Ronan McSorley was born in the north of Ireland in the 1980s. He lived in England for many years, completing a doctorate in clinical psychology at the University of East London, and spent more than a decade working for the NHS and in private practice as a therapist. In his clinical work, Ronan helped people make sense of voices, visions, and other profound and unusual experiences. In 2025, he left clinical psychology to focus on painting. He is currently based in Philadelphia, PA.

Ronan works primarily in oil on linen and linocut on paper. He finds the subjects for his compositions in found snapshots depicting anonymous figures and fleeting moments. In his work he seeks to evoke the uncanny while exploring themes of alienation and mortality.

Selected Group Exhibitions

2026, Little Death Print Swap Exhibition, 82Parris Gallery, Portland, ME

2026 Histories Reclaimed, Off the Wall at Dirty Franks, Philadelphia, PA

2026, Connections, Fabriq Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

2026, Art of the Flower, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA

2026, Passion in Art, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA

2026, Works on Paper, The Philadelphia Sketch Club, Philadelphia, PA

2025, 20th Annual Juried Exhibition, Off the Wall at Dirty Franks, Philadelphia, PA

2023, Semi-Conscious: An Exhibition of Semi-Conscious Figures and Internal Worlds, Islington Arts Factory, London, UK

Artist Talks

2026, Artist Talk, Connections, Fabriq Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

Publications

2026, The Portland Dirt, Issue 9

2026, The Portland Dirt, Issue 8

2026, The Portland Dirt, Issue 7