Wicklow-born Genieve Figgis rose to fashion fame when Marc Jacobs revealed that her colourful paintings were the inspiration behind his SS19 collection. After discovering the artist through social media, Jacobs purchased some of her pieces and then invited her to his runway show. A big sale at a Sotheby’s auction in London followed – “King and Queen”, a painting by Figgis was sold for €60,500, far more than its estimate of €4,600-€6,900. Since then, Figgis’ work has been included in Phaidon’s 2019 publication Great Women Artists; and she was included in Women’s Wear Daily’s 40 of Tomorrow list. Former J Crew boss Jenna Lyons purchased one of her paintings without even seeing it in person, commenting “Her Instagram is art crack.”

Laura Callaghan has amassed almost 300,000 followers on Instagram with her colourful, zeitgeisty illustrations of women in impressively detailed scenarios. Working for brands including Stella McCartney and Foot Locker, the London-based Irish illustrator is carving out a niche for herself in the fashion industry with her body-positive, inclusive paintings and illustrations, created using gouache paint.

Becky Donnelly is an Irish illustrator who last year had the mammoth task of illustrating the backdrops for Brown Thomas’ Art & Style window display at their Grafton Street store. Donnelly also creates ethereal sketches of fashion collections inspired by runway shows and occasionally takes to the catwalk as she double-jobs as a model in London, where she is based. Donnelly designed Louise Kennedy’s Christmas card too.

Sligo-based Eva Byrne has had huge success with her fashion-focused children’s books. She followed up her New York Times number one bestseller Princesses Wear Pants with Along Came Coco, a charming story of a little girl with a big fashion future …