Padraig Timoney is the winner of the 2002 Present Future award, established by illycaffè and Artissima, the International Contemporary Art fair in Turin, one of the largest European exhibitions in the sector.
Timoney researches artistic languages, their interactions, creative process and fruition mechanisms, for which he uses a variety of media and materials: photography, paintings and installations.
His inspiration for this illy collection stems from a simple act, where functionality and automatism converge: trying out different colored pens, felt tip pens, pencils and highlighters of different sized nibs on a paper pad.
The marks on the cups and saucers are left by many unknown hands, trying out shapes and matching colors, as their minds take a break
By reproducing the lines and doodles from actual pen tests, this avant-garde artist captures the unexpected impact of these spontaneous markings.
On 7th October 2003 illycaffè presented Pen Tests, designed by Padraig Timoney, an emerging Irish artist (born in 1968 in Ulster) winner of the 2002 edition of Present Future.
Present Future is the special initiative of Artissima the International fair of Contemporary Art in Turin - developed in collaboration with illy and dedicated to young international talent. A jury of international collectors chooses the winner of Present Future among the emerging artists under 35, previously selected by a board of museum curators. The winner receives from illycaffè a price as well as the opportunity to present a project for an illy collection. The drawings for this 2004 illy collection were taken from a few sheets of paper that were picked up in stationary shops.