THE CABINET OF WONDERS #5
LINENHALL ARTS CENTRE CASTLEBAR, Co MAYO, IRELAND
THE CABINET OF WONDERS #5 The Cabinet of Wonders #5 3 October 2017 – 20 March 2018 The Cabinet of Wonders is an ongoing project devised and curated by Ian Wieczorek Presented in association with Linenhall Arts Centre
PREFACE Cabinets of Curiosities, also known as Kunstkabinette or Wunderkammern, were collections of unusual objects which offered insights into the rich and often curious diversity of the natural world and beyond, spanning everything from antiquities and religious relics to natural ‘freaks’, medical curiosities and other uncategorisable items. Inspired by the empirical approach of Classical thinkers such as Aristotle and Pliny the Elder, Cabinets of Curiosities found their beginnings in the time of the Renaissance. Initially seen as both edifying and as markers of status for their collector-curators, they offered a cocktail of learning and entertainment. The Cabinets remained a mostly exclusive preserve of the rich and influential, until in the 19th century the likes of showman PT Barnum’s American Museum introduced a more public and often sensationalist sensibility. While the fashion for Cabinets of Curiosities no longer holds popular currency (with a few notable exceptions), they paved the way for the more formal and rigorous museum model that we are familiar with today. Taking its inspiration from the Cabinet of Curiosities, The Cabinet of Wonders presents a series of objects mined from the creative imagination of a selection of contemporary visual artists. Inspired by the eclectic approach of the original collector-curators, it presents a range of works that will hopefully intrigue and engage the passing viewer.
CURATOR’S NOTE This catalogue documents the fifth incarnation of The Cabinet of Wonders. Cabinet of Wonders #5 takes books as its theme, and is a response to the Wild Atlantic Words Literary Festival and RoolaBoola Children’s Arts Festival, events taking place concurrently at the Linenhall. The artists: Erin de Burca’s painted book covers – from the series A Story in Every Home – portray the home as a reflection of the emotional and psychological life that goes on within; Belinda Deutinger’s work engages with our sense of belonging, how we fit into our surroundings and how we deal with misalignments; David Flynn presents a literary evocation of Charon, the mythical Greek ferryman who conveyed the souls of the dead to Hades; Terri Mitchell offers an insight into the rich diversity of the natural world; Mary Morris explores ‘fictional truth’, and questions the reality of human-animal relationship; Susie Quinn explores the past through personal memories of family; Benita Stoney offers a playful alphabetical bestiary of prints. With thanks as ever to the Linenhall Arts Centre for facilitating this project, and to all the artists who submitted proposals. Ian Wieczorek
Erin de Burca 12 Invermore Grove
(oil on clothbound book)
St Anne’s
(oil on clothbound book)
22 Sutton Grove
(oil on clothbound book) In this series of painted book covers, the images portray the home as a reflection of the emotional and psychological life that goes on within. I believe we intuit a lot – often unconsciously – about those who inhabit a particular house just by observing it from outside. A house can suggest loneliness, contentment, shame, pride; a refuge or a place one dreads coming home to. The old books which act as a support for the images hint at the stories and secrets that lie behind the sameness of residential architecture; stories in different languages, which we may not understand.
Belinda Deutinger A Book – The Beginning (book, mixed media)
A Book, Part 2 – A Journey (book, mixed media) My work deals a lot with our sense of belonging, how we fit into our surroundings and how we deal with misalignments. The base support are books, from which I cut out sections, and work the remaining pages with drawings and paint. Every page I am working on is different. They haves by no means a perfect finish, rather a well-worn feel. They are like a maze, an impenetrable thicket. There are signs of life and an absence of human presence, yet there is a sense of something once well-loved and used, that now lies forgotten and hidden in the deepest corners of our minds.
David Flynn Charon
(book, wood base) I love themes of a Classical and ancient nature. Here a book is used as the base material to carve a figure of Charon, the ferryman who transports the souls of the dead to Hades in Greek mythology.
Terri Mitchell Creativity in Flower Arrangement (book, bird’s nest, branches and paper) While finding inspiration in many different subjects, Nature in its infinite variety is my main subject matter. My work is constantly inspired by the natural world and its beauty, power and hostility. From Botany to Entomology, I find endless inspiration provided by the textures and colours in the environment.
Mary Morris From Fictional Truth series (mixed media)
What we hide and what is hidden from us is concealed, secreted from view. Like the hide of an animal, it both masks and protects our interior from the intrusion of all that is exterior to it: to hide oneself or an object, or even to hide thoughts or feelings; to be hidden from apprehension. Fictional Truth conjures these senses, the embodied book of literature questioning the reality of human-animal relationship.
Susie Quinn Memories 5
(photoetching 1/1)
Memories 4
(photoetching 1/3) The two works presented here thematically explore the artist’s past through personal memories of family, using photoetchings of archival photographs presented as handmade art books.
Benita Stoney Alphabestiary
(woodcut on Arches paper, faux fur, leather) Alphabestiary offers a witty A-Z alphabet book of animals, created from individual woodcuts printed onto a single folded ribbon of paper; a joyous feather, fur and hidebound celebration of the animal kingdom.
The Cabinet of Wonders Email: cabinetofwonders999@gmail.com Website: https://cabinetofwonderssite.wordpress.com/ Linenhall Arts Centre Linenhall Street, Castlebar, Co. Mayo F23 AN24 Ireland Tel: (+) 94 9023733 Email: linenhall@anu.ie Website: www.thelinenhall.com Ian Wieczorek Tel: (+) 353 86 8200886 Email: mail@ianwieczorek.com Website: www.ianwieczorek.com