An Australian artist who now calls Laois home has made waves with the recent release of her five-track EP, which also features her own stunning artworks.

Musician, visual artist and illustrator Leonie Connellan has released her first EP 'Looking at You' under the name Hot Pink Halo, with the support of a grant from the Laois Arts office.

Ms Connellan exhibits her work internationally, and posts videos of her creative processes to her Youtube channel Spines & Splines. She and her husband came to Ireland from Australia in 2017, and after living in Dublin and Cork, the pair moved to Portarlington in 2022. 

Pictured: Hot Pink Halo, AKA Leonie Connellan pictured with her painting on an electricity box

The artist explained that they were warmly welcomed into the town's creative community.

"Back in 2022, my husband and I were looking to move out of Cork. We were searching for places that were along the Cork and Dublin train line, and I was looking for places with a strong creative community," Ms Connellan told the Leinster Express / Laois Live.

"We wanted somewhere with a creative network, and we came across Portarlington. It's hard moving overseas when you don't know anybody. I love it because it's hard to connect and network with creatives in Dublin and Cork, while Portarlington has a prevalent and well connected community. I can do what I'd look for in a city, while staying in my own town," she said.

Pictured: Ms Connellan's cover art for 'Looking for You'

"When I was searching I saw that a lot of artists were talking to each other here, which was really interesting for a small town. Port Sounds began when I moved, so I came at the right time," she laughed.

Ms Connellan began performing under her stage name Hot Pink Halo at open mic nights at the Anvil in Portarlington. She now helps with the organising and running of these nights.

Her music career began as a hobby, before growing into something much bigger. Leonie began entering into music production competitions such as Song Fight and Spintunes, where artists are provided with deadlines and song titles and must create a piece to compete with.

"It began as fun, but when you start making music you get good at it, and I had all these songs and I hadn't done anything with them," she explained.

"I put out a couple of singles and I didn't promote them- I didn't know how. I saw a callout from Laois Arts on grants, and I applied for the Laois Art Acts grant.

Pictured: Ms Connellan printing her artwork

"I was so delighted to be awarded it, it has made such a difference to me. It helped to support my work and took the pressure off me to find a job when I first moved to Laois, I cannot recommend it enough," Leonie explained. 

"Through the grant I made an EP of five song and had them mastered, I could also produce some visual artwork for the cover."

Ms Connellan holds an undergraduate degree in print making, and has a Masters of Fine Art. Her artwork for her EP 'Looking at You'.

Her music and artwork is heavily inspired by space and astronomy.

"I love making art related to space, the stars and star maps. All of the songs on my EP are about space in some regard. With my creative process, I usually need a deadline or a song title, I need someone to give me that starting point," she said.

Her stage name Hot Pink Halo was derived from an artwork she made of her favourite artist Ezra Furman and their band, where Leonie included hot pink halos behind the artists. She used 'Hot Pink Halo' as a stage name for one of her song competitions, which stuck.

"One really good think I've been navigating is that I was lucky to be selected for a trial on the basic income of artists, it has been hugely influential in helping me move to Portarlington and buy a house. I've been able to volunteer and work in the community," Leonie highlighted.

"Joining a creative community is so important, a lot of creatives tend not to talk, they're shooting themselves in the foot a bit. As a printmaker I'm used to working with others, so there's a little less isolation.

"Port's community really began to thrive when ADW painted the amazing mural on the old Savoy cinema. It made people realise that there are creators other then themselves- they all connected and started talking," Leonie finished.

Along with the launch of her EP, Ms Connellan is excited to share her latest work: a stunning incorporation of the Serpens constellation, the God of light and music Apollo, and one of her favourite artists: Taylor Swift.

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Using an old etching plate, Ms Connellan has created a stunning piece of Apollo in front of the Serpens constellation, holding Taylor Swift's guitar.

To see more of Hot Pink Halo's artwork and music, click here.