Volume 2, Issue 1

Page 1

Volume 2, Issue 1. December 2015 Art, Architecture + Design

JOE CASLIN MICK O’DEA JAMES JOYCE TOWER AI WEIWEI DUBLIN CANVAS WHAT’S ON IN DUBLIN + MORE



‘OUR NATION’S SONS’, JOE CASLIN, PHOTOGRAPH JOE CASLIN, 2014

CONTENTS 15

2 6

4 7 8

10 12 14

13 15

18

19 20

!"#$%&'#(')*#!+, -./#(!//012(232!&, 4&%, )%450!"#$%&, #66./$&2$%&/, )%($&#-.$#(307&#$!&/,

"!/#3(, $*2(805%.,

)%($2)$, +&%($0)%9!&,

1

-


WHAT’S ON IN DUBLIN Listings for December 2015, January + February 2016 Compiled by Amelie Matuschka PROJECT ARTS CENTRE ‘IMAGO’, ANDREW FOLAN, 1999, IMMA

Troika Fiscal DisobedianceConsultancy Catalan artist Núria Güell tests the limits of nations’ legal systems, interrogates how government institutions control citizens, and investigates possible abuses of power. This exhibition focuses on the erosion of sovereignty and the citizen’s right to dissent over debt repayment to the Troika.

IMMA

KERLIN GALLERY

What We Call Love: From Surrealism to Now An exhibition tackling love in the 21st century and featuring art from today’s masters including Abramović, Brancusi, Dalí, Giacometti, Oppenheim, Picasso, Warhol, Yoko Ono and more. A ‘must-see’.

Sense by Liliane Tomasko Swiss-born Tomasko creates abstract painting, sculpture and photography using various household fabrics that examine sites of domesticity. Sense moves from ‘silence to noise’, as we get closer than ever to the material objects rooted in Tomasko’s domestic sphere.

:;0/<=><?@<A0'0B0+<@ACDAE

Approaches to Paper in Studio Practice Exploration of preparatory work in studio practice, animation film and paper mãché. Artists include Edward Allington, Andrew Folan, Antony Gormley with special focus on veteran British sculptor Bill Woodrow. :F0(GH<?@<A0'0I02=AJK

NATIONAL GALLERY OF IRELAND Uniform: A Collaboration with Jackie Nickerson The exhibition contrasts photos from Nickerson’s series Terrain (2012-2013) with paintings from the NGI’s permanent collection. :O0%P>G@<A0'0:O0MDNCDAE

;F0(GH<?@<A0'0:L0MDNCDAE

TAYLOR GALLERIES

Jan Pleitner With exhibitions throughout Europe, Pleitner manages to create expressively striking paintings, driven by subconscious thought, with work full of movement and energy.

Winter Group Show After the huge success of Land and Sea in October in Taylor Galleries, Sligo-born Sean McSweeney is back with his annual Winter Group Show featuring more of his sensuous and lyrical landscapes.

;;0MDNCDAE0'0:O01DAPQ

:B0"<P<?@<A0'0IO0MDNCDAE

:R0MDNCDAE0'0:;01DAPQ

NCAD Periodical Review #5 The fifth iteration in its series, it consists of a unique, yearly survey of Irish contemporary art practices that looks at commercial gallery shows, museum exhibitions, artist-led and independent projects and curatorial practices. It is a discursive action, with the gallery laid out like a magazine so the images can speak for themselves. :O0"<P<?@<A0'0:S0MDNCDAE

THE DOORWAY GALLERY Christmas Stocking Fillers 2015 A unique show including Lisa Ballard, Christian Dorey, Andrzej Mazur and Jen O’Connor. S0"<P<?@<A0'0;:0MDNCDAE

2


‘THE MACARONI PRINT SHOP’, DARLY’S COMIC PRINTS, 1772, CHESTER BEATTY

CHESTER BEATTY

Hugh Lane (1875-1915): Dublin’s Legacy and Loss A presentation of The Hugh Lane’s priceless collection of artworks which were presented to Dublin to establish a Gallery of Modern Art in 1908. His collection includes such artists as Rodin, Augustus John, Jack B. Yeats, John Singer Sargent, John Lavery, Roderic O’Connor and Walter Osborne as well as Impressionist artists Monet, Morisot, Degas and Auguste Renoir.

Damsels for Dinner: Tale of Oeyama The Tale of Oeyama is one of the best-known heroic stories from medieval Japan. The story follows Minamoto no Yorimitsu (9481021) who slayed the demon Shuten Doji, a kidnapper of pretty maidens and a cannibal disguised as a giant human being. It is displayed in a set of three scrolls.

IO02=AJK0'0I0MDNCDAE

MOLESWORTH LERY

GAL-

Joe McGill & Michele Souter: Permanently Temporary Irish born McGill currently resides in Helsinki and works with painting, sculpture, animation and films. Michele Souter, daughter of Camille Souter explores the idea of a world outside of our own.

GALLERY OF PHOTOGRAPHY

Serge Charchoune The Franco-Russian artist Serge Charchoune, born in 1888, is described as an unpredictable individualist who evaded or subverted classic Modernism, an artist who absorbed and adapted Modernist tropes, turning them into something unique and personal.

The Solas Awards Exhibition 2015 Incorporates The Cord Prize and The Gallery of Photography Artists Award, selecting nine artists chosen by an international jury. :0"<P<?@<A0'0:O0MDNCDAE

TEMPLE BAR GALLERY AND STUDIOS

::0"<P<?@<A0'0;S0+<@ACDAE

Merlin James Merlin James returns to the Douglas Hyde Gallery. He has exhibited at KW Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin; Parasol Unit, London; Kunstverein Freiburg, and elsewhere. ::0"<P<?@<A0'0;R0+<@ACDAE

Amie Siegel Film artist Siegel has exhibited across New Zealand, New York and London. Guest curated by Megs Morley, its focus ranges from psychoanalysis to America’s post-2008 housing crisis to digital reproduction today. :T0+<@ACDAE0'0;02=AJK ‘UNTITLED’, JAN PLEITNER, 2015, KERLIN GALLELRY

THE HUGH LANE

DOUGLAS HYDE GALLERY

;B0MCN<0'0I:0MDNCDAE

Wicked Wit: Darly’s Comic Prints Mary and Matthew Darly’s eighteenth century work features over 100 hand-coloured etchings. From the time of their marriage, they worked in tandem designing, engraving and publishing prints whose popularity was such that their publications were made available throughout Great Britain and Ireland, Europe and even America. ::0/<=><?@<A0'0:R0+<@ACDAE

+<@ACDAE

3


REVIEW IB JORGENSEN: A FASHION RETROSPECTIVE !"#$%&"'()*+,*-(%.(/0,'"&1(2(3,4%0"#$5,(60#+("&1(7$+#%089(:%''$&+(;"00"4<+

Danish-born Ib Jorgensen is Ireland’s very own equivalent of legendary couturiers like Christian Dior and Yves Saint Laurent. For those of you whose parents or grandparents grew up in Ireland, Jorgensen’s clothing was the epitome of luxury apparel from the late 1950s to the early 1990s. In his youth, Jorgensen contemplated a career in architecture, but ultimately decided to study dressmaking at the Grafton Academy and never looked back. After graduation, at just twenty-two years old, he established his own couture salon. From this point on, his career grew to high acclaim within the Irish fashion industry and further afield.

Throughout the 1970s, Jorgensen’s clothing gained increasing popularity outside of Ireland. His clothing was stocked in Harrods and Liberty of London, and from this he eventually set up his own London salon in 1979. Jorgensen retired from the fashion industry in 1994. As well as being a key protagonist in the Irish fashion industry, Jorgensen also made his stamp on Irish social history through his designs. He designed two uniforms for Aer Lingus in in 1975 and 1986. He also created the first uniform for the Irish Army Women’s Service Corps, which was established in 1980. This uniform is highly symbolic of women’s rights in this country, as the formation of the corps meant that women were paid equally to men, though they could not fight in combat. Jorgensen also challenged male stereotypes in this country, as the media dubbed him ‘the only man in the world of Irish couture’.

There are numerous landmarks in his career as a couturier. In 1962, he was a founding member of the Irish Haute Couture Group and in 1982 he became the original chairperson of the Irish Designer’s Association.

Ib Jorgensen - A Fashion Retrospective is located in the National Museum of Ireland – Decorative Arts & History at Collins Barracks - home to artefacts of the giants of Irish design like Eileen Gray. It looks back on his long career through a dynamic dialogue between 40 or so garments of day, cocktail and eveningwear, which are supplemented with fashion illustrations, fashion photography and a video installation to create a nuanced experience into Jorgensen’s three and a half decade career. The sheer range of fabrics, styles and cuts is a feast for the eyes. Alex Ward, who is the head curator of textiles and costume at the National Museum of Ireland, worked closely with Jorgensen to select garments for this exhibition. The garments on display were brought together through donations to the Museum, from Jorgensen’s family and friends and from a nation-wide call-out for garments in the Irish Times in 2011. The exhibition is not arranged chronologically but according to the colour and style of the garments. The display scheme was created in tandem with Yvonne Doherty of the National Museum of Ireland’s graphic design department, making the exhibition a true collaboration between designers and curator. The focus on the colour and style of the garments almost makes the display feel like the work of a visual merchandiser. This is not to say that the garments have been contrived as the pared-down display allows Jorgensen’s designs to speak for themselves, evoking to an extent the original shop window in which many would have been displayed.

CAPE AND TROUSER, 1975, IB JORGENSEN

4


REVIEW

Upon entering the exhibition, you are immediately faced with the freestanding exhibition cases - unquestionably the showpieces of both the exhibition and Jorgensen’s career. One of his most expensive jackets is featured in one of these cases. It is a black velvet beaded coat, which at the time of creation in 1989 cost £2,500 and took weeks to make. The dress on the cover of the exhibition brochure also features in the exhibition. It is a one shoulder black and white Grecian style dress from the late 1960s made from one piece of fabric – testament to his skill as a dressmaker. It is on loan to the Museum from contemporary Irish fashion designer Sonya Lennon. One of his bespoke wedding dresses is also on display in these cases; the mannequin is so petite that the conservator Dora Murphy had to use that of a child. Pieces like this give the exhibition a real individualism. It is refreshing to see Jorgensen’s bespoke pieces amongst sample sizes, as it gives us an insight into the breadth of customers who invested, wore and cherished his designs. Jorgensen’s collections are characterised by their diversity and not so much by their uniformity. While the exhibition appears to be an accidentally eclectic range of styles due to its time span, it should be noted that Jorgensen purposely introduced variety to each of his collections. He created them with the ‘small world’ mentality of Ireland in mind. Alex Ward pointed out that it was diversity in his collections that allowed his clients more exclusivity when investing in one of his garments.

APPLIQUE EVENING COAT, 1975, IB JORGENSEN

It was somewhat disappointing not to see some of Jorgensen’s designs for women in the Irish workforce. It would have been poignant to have the designs for the Irish Army Women’s Service Corps featured in this particular exhibition, especially in light of the importance of the military history in the permanent exhibitions of this particular Museum. However it would have been difficult to incorporate his workforce designs into an exhibition that is arranged through form and colour schemes. It is easy to forget that many of Jorgensen’s clothing were worn and used to exhaustion by their owners – especially garments like trousers made from Irish tweed. The omission leaves a fragmented picture into the reality of his oeuvre as a designer. Regardless, Jorgensen’s original motto of ‘Fabric, Cut and Style’ is embodied at Ib Jorgensen - A Fashion Retrospective in an engaging reflection into the career of one Ireland’s greatest fashion designers.

There are further details in this exhibition that create a sense of the exclusivity associated with the Jorgensen label. Many elements taken from the setup of a fashion show are transposed onto this exhibition, animating these garments. At the entrance, Jorgensen’s name is projected in lights and smooth ‘80s jazz plays out. The cases and exhibition panels are spotlighted to create a ‘boutique’ feel. The simple bold ‘J’ on display in one of the cases was integral to Jorgensen’s brand identity. The far wall of the exhibition shows video footage from the RTÉ archives of one of Jorgensen’s fashion shows from 1982, offering a glimpse into the height of his career. The monochromatic exhibition panels to the left of the room compliment the vibrant polychrome that characterise of the rest. On these exhibition panels there are details of Patricia Murray’s monochromatic scarf designs. She married Jorgensen in 1968. This simple detail in the exhibition panels creates a wonderful dialogue in the exhibition of her involvement in the label, especially in the more ornate appliqué and hand-beaded designs.

5


REVIEW SIR HUGH LANE (1875-1915): A CENTENARY PERSPECTIVE !"#$%&"'(="'',08(%.(/0,'"&1 ‘THE GARDEN OF LINDSAY HOUSE, LONDON’, ROSE BARTON, NGI

Nestled in between At A Glance: Portraits by John Butler Yeats and Jackie Nickerson’s more contemporary painting and photography collection Uniform, is a commemorative exhibition on the life and work of Cork-born Sir Hugh Lane and his significant contribution to the visual arts in Ireland and the world at large. Although small, the exhibition does not evade particular areas of Lane’s life or artistic choices. Rather it offers a balanced, manageable representation of a man who, although known for accepting projects simply ‘for the public good’, was often viewed with suspicion. Nevertheless it is a celebration of his life and contribution to the Dublin and London art scenes, one hundred years after his tragic death on the RMS Lusitania.

In addition to assembling collections in Dublin, Lane was also heavily immersed in the contemporary art scene of South Africa, working with the Johannesburg Art Gallery and the Michaelis Collection of Dutch and Flemish paintings for Cape Town. Over the course of his life, Lane presented twenty-four paintings to the National Gallery of Ireland, where this exhibition of his work can now be found. Following his untimely death in 1915, forty-two Old Masters and British 18th century pictures were chosen from his Estate, together with a small number of bronze works.

PORTRAIT OF SIR HUGH LANE, C. HARRISON, NGI

Lane was one of over 1000 people killed in the Lusitania’s sinking off the west coast of county Cork. He had, since 1914, been the Director of the National Gallery of Ireland. With a ‘self-acquired’ knowledge of art, he emerged as an independent picture dealer and restorer relatively quickly, perhaps thanks to his ‘sharp tongue’, ‘great single-mindedness’ and ‘good business acumen’ - as the exhibition suggests. By the age of only twenty-three, he was well established in the artistic sphere and went on to coordinate Irish exhibitions of both Old Master and contemporary work (1902-1904). In addition, one of his most famous, and controversial, feats was his ‘conditional gift’ of 39 French 19th century paintings to the Municipal Gallery of Modern Art, now situated in Parnell Square Dublin in 1908. In June 1909, Lane was knighted at the considerably young age of 33 for his service to the arts. He continued to support other artists and gained portrait commissions for John Butler Yeats, William Orpen and the controversial Antonio Mancini among others, all of whose work features in the exhibition. In fact, Mancini’s charcoal ‘Portrait of Sarah Cecilia Harrison’ is displayed, as well as Sarah Cecilia Harrison’s own portrait of Sir Hugh Lane himself.

What is most refreshing about this exhibition is the variety in the compositions displayed. Lane has collected a range of works from Gainsborough’s rustic ‘Landscape with Cattle’ (1767, oil on canvas) to Roderic O’Conor’s impressionist ‘A Quiet Read’ (1910). Tipperary-born Rose Barton’s watercolour on board of ‘The Garden of Lindsey House, London’ is in fact Lane’s own Chelsea home. It is not only the variety in the artistic medium that is striking but also the contrasting subject matters. The exquisite depiction of the bodice of Rembrandt’s ‘Portrait of a Lady Holding a Glove’ (1632-33) hangs alongside John Singer Sargent’s sombre ‘Portrait of Woodrow Wilson’ (1917) and the almost overwhelmingly bright, even child-like, depiction of ‘Mellifont Abbey’ (1940s) by Gerard Dillon. The National Gallery have not only displayed the works bequest to them, but also additional details and objects relating to Lane’s life and the effect he had on the general public, such as his own Account Book (1902-15) and publications concerning him since his death. Relevant and insightful information on The Lane Fund is also presented. At the time of his death, Lane had bequeathed his Chelsea home, Lindsey House, and the Old Master pictures he owned, to the National Gallery of Ireland with the intention of creating a picture fund. The fund provides an astonishing £1000 to £3000 each year, and acquires many impressive works such as Perugino’s ‘The Lamentation of the Dead Christ’, whose lengthy conservation has just concluded, and now hangs in the central area of the exhibition.

6


JAMES JOYCE TOWER For those of us who struggle/ignore/avoid finding the time to exercise, a long walk on the weekend is the classic Irish answer. About a year ago my sister and I were watching those braver than us, brave the Irish sea at the 40ft in Sandycove. Whilst there we stumbled upon the James Joyce Museum which inhabits the martello tower, built around 1804.

JAMES JOYCE TOWER, 2015, SAM VAN HOOK

Martello towers predominantly scatter the east coast of Ireland, originally built by the British as a military defence against any attack posed by the French during Napoleon’s reign in the early 19th century. In the early 20th century the tower was occupied by Oliver St John Gogarty, a medical student and literary figure. It was he who introduced James Joyce to the tower in 1904. Although described as a brief and tense stay in the tower, the six days spent there had such an impact on Joyce that he based the opening scene of Ulysses in the tower.

The guest signature book is a remarkable testament to the Tower’s success, with over 45,000 people visiting each year. The Friends of the Joyce Tower are to thank. Their warm welcoming faces enthusiastically introduce visitors to the Tower. They are true Joyce enthusiasts and each ear on Bloomsday a popular reading is held. The Museum itself consists of paintings and photos of Joyce and his family and friends, numerous first editions of his works, and even one of two plaster death masks made of Joyce. Upstairs you can find a replica of how the room which features in Ulysses is described. Even if heights and narrow stairs terrify you, the short climb to the rampart of the tower is worth the incredible view of Dublin Bay, where you can see Scott’s remarkable house beside the Tower, and the surrounding Sandycove.

The Tower has been linked with Irish architect Michael Scott. He had a keen interest in the art, and bought the tower in 1954. It was Scott that initiated the establishment of a museum through the work of the Friends of James Joyce Society. Scott’s own home, built to resemble a ship and entitled ‘Geragh’, is famous for its design and can be seen clearly from the tower’s rampart. Today the tower is owned by Fáilte Ireland and run by the Friends of Joyce Tower Society.

The tower is a fantastic asset to the area, run by truly passionate and welcoming Joyce experts. It is well worth a visit to discover more about Dublin’s iconic writer and for a gorgeous view of the bay.

When the Tower and Museum was forced to restrict its opening days to special request due to budgetary constraints, Sandycove locals were frustrated by the loss of their historic attraction. It was out of this frustration that the Friends of Joyce Tower Society was born in 2012. Committed to the Joyce Tower, the group of volunteers dedicate their time to staffing Tower for public access 365 days a year.

The James Joyce Tower, built around 1804, is open 365 days a year from 10 am to 6 pm (10-4 in winter) and admission is free.

7


HARRIET BRUCE -

‘Life can seem suffocatingly small or overwhelmingly large but with pen and paper there is always the opportunity to push your boundaries...your edges. It depends on where you stand and how big you want to be.’

‘Through the free form of drawing and commentary

‘COAT’, HARRIET BRUCE

8

‘FLOUNDERING’, HARRIET BRUCE

illustration my images can push my boundaries by distorting a recognisable reality. I am still experimenting but I think this is how I am able to face both the possibilities, and dangers, of change.’


‘GONE FISHING’, HARRIET BRUCE

‘I like the fact that I can suspend reality with a line. I can

play with a metaphysical idea but still emphasise, through the format of the journal, a coherent thread that actually maps out my day to day.’

‘For now, everything exists in a sketchbook…’

9


INTERVIEW

MICK O’DEA You are currently working on your upcoming exhibition at the Royal Hibernian Academy, how is your work going? It seems to be on target but I’m a little bit behind. I’m also dependant on a crew to help me with the sculptures, Terry here is leading that crew, and we are leaving the finishing elements for the last two weeks prior to the exhibition opening.

medias, pastels, and as I said I draw a lot for my own pleasure. I’ll look at anything really. I look at how anything is being presented whether it’s on a monitor, or TV screen or in live performance. Do you use photography? I do, I use photography a lot now. Up until five or six years ago, I would always work directly from life. Since I’ve been working on this theme, a historical theme, over the last six years, I have inevitably had to use photographs because of the way I’m working. I have found it quite liberating and have started to use photography in the way that I do painted portraiture as well. So, this historical theme that I have commenced purely from photographs has started to affect how I paint in all the other areas now, including landscape.

What do you want the visitor to get out of the exhibition? A sense of awe, I think. An epic kind of response. I want it to be quite theatrical and I want it to be visceral. What is your method of work? I’m painting on canvas, large scale, exactly 4m by I think 2.7m. It’ll be 4 paintings. I’m also working with sculpture, cardboard, wood and rope, so it’s an instillation.

Last summer, you painted a portrait a day over tens days at the Kilkenny Arts Festival in front of a live audience. What was the main difficulty? I was careful in that the public performance aspect happened in the afternoon usually. That was in the second part of the process in the painting because usually, in 80% of the cases, I had that person to work on in the mornings as well so I was able to get it on the way and then I just kept working in front of the audience. The hardest part was completed. However, there was one portrait that I started in the morning and I had a new sitter in the afternoon. So that was all down in front of the audience, commencing and starting. There was an element of danger, in the sense that I could have been exposing myself to public humiliation. Fortunately it didn’t work out that way, in that there was something tangible in front of me and I could say if it went wrong that it’s from my own perspective or view of it.

Do you have any rituals that you perform before/ while/after painting? Not really, just dealing with anxiety. Sometimes I forget about it, but there is anxiety about a show like this because I have a lot of other things to do to ensure that I am also giving the exhibition my primary attention. What is your favourite light to work in? Ideally, natural light, well ventilated, high ceilings - total contrast to where I am, which is the equivalent of a boiler room of a ship with no lights and in a basement! Are you interested in any other medium other than painting? To work in, yes, I would be interested in working with cardboard and wood and rope, which I am using the opportunity here to do. I like working with clay. I draw quite a bit. I like drawing

10


‘MICHAEL O’DEA’, AMELIA STEIN

afterwards, for a few years, visiting. I was really highly motivated to work in prisons. I found it a unique experience and learned an awful lot I wouldn’t have swapped it for anything. In 1988 ‘Artists in Prison Scheme’ was initiated by the Department of Justice, following the successful ‘Writers in Prison Scheme’. I was asked to go to Saint Patricks Prison for young offenders. There was a lot of talent there. Which contemporary artist should we keep our eyes on? Peter Borrins and Vera Kluth stand out. She’s a versatile multi-media artist, good sculptor, good with machinery and she paints well. I think she has got a very good attitude.

THE PROUST QUESTIONNAIRE Did you like it? Would you do it again? No, more or less that was it. It worked out. I think I fell off the audience, very much. A lot of the audience was there to encounter the people who I happened to be painting, so that was part of it as well. It ended up being a bit like a TV show of an hour and a half ’s duration where I interview the person that I’m painting, they interview me, and it’s open to questions from the audience. In the meantime there’s a painting going under way. It’s good television.

1.What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? Putting things off. 2. What is the trait you most deplore in others? I’m very forgiving. 3. What is your greatest extravagance? Buying a car, I guess. 4. What is your current state of mind? Slightly preoccupied.

How did your interest for Thom McGinty, aka The Diceman, affect your interest in portrait painting? Thom McGinty, well known minor artist performer, model and clown died twenty years ago. He happened to come to Dublin from Glasgow in 1976, the same year that I came from Clare to Dublin. He was a model in the College of Art and he was a fascinating man and a wonderful artist. One wanted to draw him - not just me, but my friends as well. From drawing him constantly in NCAD, I got really interested in portraiture and working from life.

5. Which words or phrases do you most overuse? It’s a good one, I’m probably not even conscious of it. The one I probably overuse is ‘like’. 6. Which talent would you most like to have? Musical. Play the fiddle. 7. What is your greatest fear? Somebody asked me that and the answer I had at the time was ‘being found out’. 8. What do you consider your greatest achievement? Still being around.

You taught for many years in colleges, and schools, how was the experience of teaching in prisons? It was wonderful. I spent maybe six or seven years working in prisons constantly and then

11


INTERNATIONAL ARTIST

REMNANT FOOTSTEPS HERBERT BAGLIONE

‘1000 SHADOWS’, 2013, ITALY, ARRESTED MOTION

Born in 1977, Herbert Baglione is an artist of irrefutable skill in his field, predominantly working within the realm of street art. He is renowned for his large-scale murals on rooftops and street surfaces which depict simplistic images of extreme humanoid forms - sinuous manifestations twisting into impossible shapes that are characteristically expressive. His observations and drawings of his hometown of São Paolo fuelled his passion for the urban space. The city’s inspiration is apparent in Baglione’s choice of font, probably derived from the ‘Pichação’ form of graffiti used in the South-eastern districts of São Paolo. Baglione uses paint, chalk, aerosol spray paints, and even his own blood to depict themes of death, chaos, sexuality and faith.

Starting in July, Baglione chose various locations for his wide-spanning body of work such as Madrid, Parma, and Paris. These places serve as the beneficiary of his disturbing and macabre images dealing with death, existentialism, and the soul. One of the chosen sites was an abandoned psychiatric hospital in Parma. Baglione’s work heightened the unsettling nature of the dilapidated building. Ghostly figures slither along the floor and walls, peeking around corners, and imposing their ominous presence on all that entered. Rusting wheelchairs dot the hallways of peeling mildewed walls. The spectral apparitions are illustrated as simplified, elongated creatures, depicted in a black and white colour scheme reminiscent of the illustration style of Aubrey Beardsley.

In creating a work, Baglione focuses not on the overall unified effect created giving his work a distinctive fluidity and calm impression, formed by coalesced lines and patterns of fine detail, and the distinctive figural characters created by the artist. Each colour is chosen for the creation of a unified appearance and the expression of a succinct message, rejecting a focus on distinction.

‘1000 SHADOWS’, 2013, ITALY, ARRESTED MOTION

Shadows, an ongoing element of Baglione’s artistic oeuvre from 1999, are central to his 2013 ‘1000 Shadows’ series.

Monochrome the primary aesthetic palette exercised by Baglione. His use of black and white conveys the sinister and possibly nefarious nature of the figures. The ghostly figures emphasise the old psychiatric hospital’s function. This understanding of spatial construction and connection derives much from his earlier graffiti work. While the style Baglione employs has varied across his career, there is an innate link between the interaction of image and site, and the more general themes of sexuality and death which pervade his work. The simplicity of Baglione’s images adds to the emotional force of his locations. By playing with the relationship between structure and image, Baglione generates a new type of interest in seeing something afresh, like the trail of souls roaming the hospital floors.

12


INTERNATIONAL ARTIST

‘THEY COME TO US WITHOUT A WORD’, JOAN JONAS, 2015 VENICE

J

OAN ONAS

Joan Jonas, born in 1936 in New York, began her artistic career as a sculptor and then progressed into performance art and films, in which she has become a pioneer. In the late 1960’s she created a performance ‘Mirror Pieces’ in which performers moved across the stage carrying mirrors and slowly rotating. Influenced by Borges’ short story ‘The Garden of Forking Paths’ Jonas used the mirrors in her pieces as a device to change the image and the space, to alter the audience’s perception of the performance and make them part of it. Eradicating the fourth wall by including the audience in her performances became a theme Jonas has used ever since. These mirror pieces led her to be an innovator in performance art in the United States. It wasn’t until on a trip to Japan where she purchased a video camera that she introduced videos into her performances, allowing her to create an innovative visual language.

Jonas designed freestanding rippled mirrors which were hand-crafted in Murano and stand alongside the other objects. The theme at the centre of the exhibition is the fragility of nature which she combines with ghosts. Ghosts relate to memories of creatures that are becoming extinct and disappearing. Jonas’ exhibit celebrates nature and its fragility and layers it with this mystical theme.

‘They Come To Us Without A Sound’ first exhibited at the US pavilion at the 2015 Venice Biennale. It moves to Singapore in January 2016. One of Jonas’ sources for the exhibit is Haldor Laxness’ book ‘Under the Glacier’ written in the 1960s which refers to the honeybee’s process of taking pollen to the hive and then producing honey. Jonas is fascinated by this amazing colony of workers. She exploits and interprets this idea by having a video of the honeybees at work layered underneath children playing, showing the cycle of nature and life. The unity and diligence of the bees is a miracle of nature. Speaking about Laxness and the honeybee, Jonas remarked ‘the fact that the bee can make honey is a kind of miracle. Of course these bees are endangered. Climate is an enormous subject that none of us completely understand. But I think it’s on a lot of artists’ minds. I’m not the only one.’ For the first time in her career ‘They Come To Us Without A Sound’ uses children as performers. Their youthful innocence contrasts with the transience of nature and the futility of life. She allows the noises and chaos of real life to influence and contribute to her videos, combining direction and spontaneity.

The videos show readings of ghost stories, and performances of dances and skits by children. Jonas layers videos and audio. A video of children playing with sticks is layered on a video of a honeycomb and a recording of mystic chanting and ghost story recitals. The division of the exhibit in different rooms with sub-themes, creates a sense of unified fragmentation, joined by the leitmotifs: masks, the natural world, mirrors and the mystical world.

13

Jonas’ dog features in the piece. With a Go-Pro attached to his collar, he walks down a beach. The combination of upside down video shots (the dog’s collar keeps slipping) and the crunching sound of stepping on shells creates a charming discord. Jonas’ beautifully interwoven audio and visuals engage the audience on both a sensual and emotive level. Her meticulous and innovative work is sure to stun audiences in Singapore when it exhibits there in January.


INTERNATIONAL ARTIST

Known for his politically charged art installations, Ai Weiwei is never one to shy away from a challenge. His controversial ‘Study of perspective’ included a series of photographs of Weiwei giving political institutions the middle finger. Meanwhile, ‘Remembering’, was an installation in honour of the school children that died in 2008 Sichuan earthquake. Clashing with the Chinese Communist Party, his art has come at a cost. Although never formally charged, Weiwei has been beaten to the point of cerebral haemorrhage, imprisoned for 81 days, and stripped of his passport during the 2011 crackdown on political activists. Now he is facing another brick wall - this time comprised of Lego bricks. Earlier this year, Weiwei placed a bulk Lego order with the Danish toy giant for an unknown upcoming art installation. Lego refused the order, claiming that it ‘cannot approve the use of Lego for political use’. However this is not the first time Weiwei has used Lego. In 2014 his ‘@Large’ exhibition opened in Alcatraz, the disused island penitentiary, comprising of a giant Lego carpet of the faces of famous political prisoners. Polish artist, Zbignew Liberia, controversially used the bricks in 2002 as part of an exhibit on Nazi imagery in modern art. Liberia constructed an Auschwitz replica from Lego pieces. Unaware that their pieces were being used the company threatened to pursue legal action

Shell have also used the bricks in a campaign which Lego allowed, despite the firms controversial arctic drilling at the time. So why Ai Weiwei? Some critics cite the upcoming opening of Legoland in Shanghai, just one of a series of recent Anglo-Chinese deals. Supporting a well known Chinese dissident could reflect badly on the toy manufacturer. However, the Legoland parks were bought by a UK firm, Merlin Entertainment, ten years ago, making the link a little tedious. More likely, maybe, is that China is Lego’s biggest market. Lego may not be willing to risk this extensive consumer base in the name of art. To this effect, the Global Times, a state run Chinese newspaper, recently published a column suggesting that dissidents will be increasingly less supported by western governments if they continue to jeopardize border interests. ‘Dissidents need to carefully observe the subtle changes between China and the West and try not to overdo things that too often “add trouble”’ to western society’. In response to this so called censorship, Wei Wei has taken to social media, inviting his supporters to deposit Lego pieces through the sunroof of cars in organised Lego collection points, from Berlin to Melbourne. Although Weiwei’s final project remains unclear, thousands of fans across the globe have donated their old bricks.

14

(LEFT) MELISSA DAVEY FOR THE GUARDIAN; (RIGHT) WARHOL-WEIWEI SHOW BY JOHN GOLLINGS

AI WEI WEI

Weiwei claims that Lego is not ‘a cultural and political actor in the globalised economy with questionable values’, accusing them of ‘censorship and discrimination’. Though the company’s moral standpoint on creative collaboration is ambiguous they are arguably within their rights to decide their own brand associations. However how do they define what is political and what is not. In 2014 Maya Weinstock submitted an idea to Lego for a kit to celebrate influential female US Supreme Court judges. Weinstock was rejected possible association with ‘politics and political symbols, campaigns or movements.’ That year, Lego released both a White House and Lincoln Memorial. Given that the toy company’s primary aim is to provide children with building blocks it is understandable that they have no interest in politicizing this process. However a blanket policy on political projects allows multinational corporations to dictate what is political and what is not, effectively constituting the ‘censorship and discriminations’ Weiwei condemns. Either ‘global political actors’ or simple toy makers, Lego has a responsibility not to be seen as exporting censorship. As educators through creativity, Lego and Weiwei may indeed have more in common than they’d like. To think what they might achieve with a little cooperation.


JOE CASLIN

‘THE CASTLE’, JOE CASLIN, PHOTGRAPH BY DAVID SEXTON, 2015

-

What impact do you think your murals had on people in the lead up to the marriage equality referendum? I had looked at other kind of referenda that took place in Ireland before that, such as the abortion referendum. Any time that I think back on that all I see is placards of little fetuses and people really aggressively protesting outside Leinster house or walking up and down Grafton street. I thought that this referendum was far more simple, in a way.There was something incredibly basic about it because it was just about love. I just wanted to make an image that was dignified and that showcased samesex relationships, but the basic thing was love. I think it was an impactful image because it was the first time that a same sex couple or same sex embrace had been

publicly showcased. We are bored by the imagery thrown at us every day of the week. I wanted to create something that was different and something that had power but that spoke very quietly and softly. What would you say to the people who defaced marriage equality murals coming up to the referendum? Nothing really. Once I put up the images I don’t own them anymore. They’re for the public and that’s the very nature of street art. You as the artist compose the idea and generate the art form but the second it goes on the building you don’t own it anymore. It’s a public piece of art. The art is there to provoke – the work that I make speaks about social issues. That’s my basis as a street artist. I focus on social issues that

15

I think that we, as a society, need to confront. So I don’t own it. I don’t really care if people go up and touch it and wonder how it’s made; other people pull bits from it; some people throw eggs at it and other people are delighted when the rain takes it down. It doesn’t really have any impact on me - that’s just how it is. I’ve seen 40 drawings go up and I’ve seen 40 drawings come down. The way they come down doesn’t provoke much thought. Your project, ‘Our Nation’s Sons,’ aims to shed light on the apathy and social exclusion felt by some young men in our society. What inspired you to begin this project? I went to Edinburgh five years ago to go back and study. Part of what we had to


do for our work was to devise a project. I’d been working as a teacher for 5 years before that and in those 5 years, I’d lost 4 kids to suicide. I use art as a way of figuring out my head. I go into my world and do the drawing and by the time the drawing is done, I’m fixed and my head is straightened out a bit. I knew that artwork had always had this amazing power. If you use it in the right way you can focus a conversation. Five years ago in Ireland there was no conversation taking place about the position of young men. The emigration levels were ridiculous. The Trayvon Martin case took place in the United States and the London riots had just finished that summer. It was kind of like: where are the young men and why are they so disenfranchised? If we don’t give them a role and we don’t respect them and we don’t show them that they’re a part of the conversation, how do they react? Does society fall apart as a result? We’ve seen it in Ireland over the last decade. Suicide has touched the door of nearly every household in Ireland. 80% of all suicides are men. In the last year and a half the number of young men taking their life has slowly gone down. We’re lucky in that we began a conversation five years ago about mental health and made some conscious decisions to get it into the media spotlight. I remember when I started the project very few typical media outlets wanted to touch it because it wasn’t something that people wanted to read about or listen to. But now it’s a focus and every media outlet has seen that it’s time to talk about it and talk about how things can change, and what things have changed. When Bressie made that speech two years ago it was a particularly difficult point. It just made things that little bit more palatable and that little bit more normalized. So you think that there’s been a good response to the project? Yeah, there’s been change at a macro level and at a micro level. For example, when we put up that massive drawing in Limerick, the whole of the city started to engage with it. I don’t put up any text with the drawings at all and the reason behind that is that it becomes an advertisement - you’re forcefully telling people how to think and what to think. But if you put up an image and there’s nothing else there,

you allow a conversation to take place – people start to ask questions about why it’s there and what it means. Bit by bit, people will figure it out. Even when we were down on site in Limerick this lad drove over to us and rolled down his window and talked to us about something incredibly personal - about his mental health and his two sons mental health. That conversation was part of a thought process. He’d never had the opportunity to let that out or to speak about it. That’s what the artwork does, it provides ignition for that conversation to take place.

‘If you’re an artist you dig into your own self to try to tell a story’ Who usually helps you put up your murals? Is youth involvement important in the process? We try to get the whole community activated – get them wondering what the drawing is. The most interesting part is when we go down to schools and youth centres or drop in centres or even just pick people up off the street. We recruit a gang of young men to become the work force that installs these drawings. They are both the subjects and the creators. They learn the nuances and the techniques that we use, how to drive the machinery that we use and they make something amazing. When I go down I have to be a ball of energy for the first few days, and then, bit by bit, I pull that energy away and they take over. By the last day it’s their project. It’s amazing when you watch those kids put up something amazing and they feel that they’ve created something powerful and something positive in their community. So was it because of the statistics of suicide that you focused on men rather than women for the project? Yeah, I mean I come from a family of three lads. I couldn’t ever say what it feels like to be a woman because I’m not. I’m only speaking about the world that I live in. It’s not alienating 50% of the island at all - girls have always been a huge part of each of the projects that we do but what I know is what it is like to be a young lad in Ireland. I’ve lived that so that’s where I work from. If you’re an artist you dig into your own self to

16

‘OUR NATION’S SO

try to tell a story and if you don’t, if you’re telling a story and you haven’t lived it I don’t think it has that power. Your murals aren’t designed to be durable, is this an important aspect of your work? Or would you ever be interested in exhibiting in a gallery? The artwork lives within a couple of different platforms so there will always be an original drawing for each of the artworks and then once it goes up there are photographs so there’s another level. It does live as an artwork that has a way into the gallery - there are other access points that lead back into that world. That‘s how street art works at the moment and that’s why it has such vibrancy and movement, because it bridges the worlds of the gallery environment and the urban environment. You been using a kind of potato adhesive for your works, how did you come up with that? We’re blessed in this country in that we’ve some of the most beautiful stone structures and ancient buildings, and that’s where I want to put art - on places that you’d never really associate with street art. I’m lucky that what I put up with my installations causes no adverse effects on the building at all –


Does your job as a teacher influence your work? Being a teacher is weird one – under no circumstance are you a student’s parent, and you’re not their friend either, yet you are both. When you get a phone call at 3 o’clock in the morning telling you that one of your kids has taken their own life, that absolutely breaks your heart. You have to go into school the next day and stand in front of a classroom and be the brave one for the rest of the school. That happens too much - far too much in too many school around Ireland. That’s what influences what I’m doing – I get to see amazing talent and vibrant kids and I get to work with really cool people every day of the week and they absolutely influence what I’m doing. They are my go-to when I need to ask a question and it’s great because I always get incredibly honest answers like ‘that’s shit.’

Are there any other artists doing a good job at tackling mental health issues through their work? Maser is doing amazing work. He’s a Dublin based street artist and he went through his N’S SONS’, JOE CASLIN, PHOTOGRAPH JOE CASLIN, 2014 own mental or emotional health issues. He speaks about that and makes some really inspiring and thought-provoking pieces of art. its paper and potato, it goes up and when You always have to dip into your mental it comes down you won’t even know that health to make art that is powerful. You althe piece was ever there. We’re also in talks ways have to tap into your emotional sense about using some really interesting build- because if you don’t, then it’s just not art. ings for some of the upcoming projects that Some of the strongest artworks come from we’re hoping to do next year, buildings of the soul of someone. Mental health is a topic heritage. I have to do work with councils of attention now but it has always been in and heritage officers and people that protect art. Always. Forever. these structures, and they won’t let me put up anything that could damage these beau- Your YES equality murals were inspired by tiful buildings. the painting ‘Meeting on the Turret Stairs’. Do you often take inspiration from specific work and incorporate it into your work? Sometimes. That one was interesting – I came up with the idea for that artwork around Christmastime. I was sitting down and I knew I wanted to do a piece for the YES equality campaign and being an art teacher you talk about works of art every day of the week. That artwork has been referenced as Ireland’s favourite piece of art and every time it’s Valentine’s Day, that artwork always comes up. It’s just really a watercolour of love. And to use that as a starting point meant that the image was already in the psyche of the people. There were different levels to it. if you wanted to look at that YES equality mural and just see a drawing of two lads then that was fine and then if you wanted to see that it

‘Where

are the young men and why are they so disenfranchised? If we don’t give them a role and we don’t respect them and we don’t show them that they’re a part of the conversation, how do they react?

17

referenced that artwork, that gave it another level. And then there were other levels such as the tattoos on James’ arm which was the motif that was around the frame of the watercolour painting. I always try to put in different artistic levels so there’s a kid of higher order of engagement in the artworks that we make. You have to make yourself interested in the work – otherwise you’re just putting out portraits.

‘Street art is no longer

just associated with vandalism. There’s a maturity in the artwork that’s being produced in Ireland now. An incredible maturity and level of engagement.

You’re working on the 1916 commemorations. What kind of work will you be doing? We’re looking at putting up a couple of pieces in Dublin to commemorate it in a kind of modern way by looking at how that period has influenced Ireland now. It won’t be an image of Pádraig Pearse stuck on a wall. It’ll be something very modern, very now. We’re just figuring out the details and talking through stuff. We’re working with the National Museum at Collins Barracks. Since we put up the equality piece people are far more open to having discussions about the work and street art is no longer just associated with vandalism. There’s a maturity in the artwork that’s being produced in Ireland now. An incredible maturity and level of engagement. It’s nice to be asked to do things like that now.


‘BETRAYAL OF CHRIST’, GUERCINO, C.1621, FITZWILLIAM MUSEUM, CAMBRIDGE

‘TAKING OF CHRIST’, CARAVAGGIO, C.1602, NGI

Observances

Although it is often argued that Albrecht Dürer was a considerable influence on Il Guercino’s ‘Betrayal of Christ’ (c.1621), it would be impossible to ignore the effect of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, in particular his ‘Taking of Christ’ (c.1602), displayed in the National Gallery of Ireland.

three armoured and helmeted soldiers. As Fried observes, their armour is ‘perfectly rendered’ yet in an almost reptilian, inhuman way that portrays them as somewhat aversive and impersonal. This is added to by the fact that their helmets cover almost all of their faces.

As critic Michael Fried has pointed out, the ‘Taking of Christ’ is the only painting by Caravaggio to include Christ as well as the painter himself. It was rediscovered in Dublin as late as 1998 and has been considered, by those including Fried, as ‘among the most extraordinary in Caravaggio’s oeuvre’. It is thought to have been commissioned by Ciriaco Mattei, a leading patron of Caravaggio, together with Giustiniani and Del Monte.

Another striking similarity is the two painters’ use of light, particularly that of chiaroscuro. The reflection on Caravaggio’s armour, a recurrent detail in his work, is of a more precise, crisp quality than Guercino’s helmets. Its brightness suggests the light might be from a source such as the moon. Guercino’s illumination of Christ’s neck and shoulders is so bright that it is almost as if the lantern wa added as an afterthought.

The similarities between ‘Taking of Christ’ and Guercino’s ‘Betrayal of Christ’, exhibited in the Fitzwilliam Museum (University of Cambridge), are indisputable. Guercino travelled to Rome in May 1621, where he would undoubtedly have viewed a number of Caravaggio’s compositions, as well as living in the Italian city of Cento where it would have been impossible to avoid the presence and influence of Caravaggism. Critics such as Denis Mahon maintain the likelihood that Guercino would have seen Caravaggio’s painting. Moreover, both Guercino and Caravaggio were undeniably influenced by Dürer’s Woodcut of 1509.

The naturalist approach of Guercino in the ‘Betrayal of Christ’ suggests he must have been aware of Caravaggio’s work. Caravaggio appears to turn a religious scene into a genre scene, enabling the spectator to relate to the divine. The figures in both Caravaggio and Guercino’s pictures are strikingly realistic. Caravaggio uses a swirl of drapery to frame Christ and Judas’ head, similar to Guercino’s rope. There are some differences between both artists’ work. Caravaggio’s ‘Taking of Christ’ illustrates ‘the calm before the storm’ whilst Guercino’s ‘Betrayal of Christ’ is a concentration on the moment of Christ’s arrest - ‘the storm fully unleashed’. Guercino seems more intent on arousing a dramatic response. What is perhaps most thought-provoking is the contrast of Caravaggio’s anonymous, almost inhuman, profiles and Guercino’s grimacing figures.

Both paintings depict Christ’s hands clasped loosely in a reflection of calm yet steadfast awareness. Prominent in contrast to the dark background, the figure of Jesus in the ‘Taking of Christ’ sways slightly to the left but does not recoil, whereas Guercino’s composition could even be considered to be a ‘study of hands’, as Brilliana Harley proposes. At least twelve hands are visible in his composition, used almost as vehicles of emotion. Judas’ firmly clutches his moneybag, whilst the rope-thrower’s hands, covered in steel armour, grasps the rope almost robotically. In each painting Judas’ brow is furrowed. Caravaggio seems to depict the kiss of Judas as he grasps Christ’s arm whereas in Guercino’s ‘Betrayal of Christ’ Judas does not touch Christ. It is interesting to contrast these intense focal points with Carravaggio’s

It is likely that many of Caravaggio’s other works also influenced Guercino. ‘Supper at Emmaus’ (1601), like the ‘Betrayal of Christ’, depicts a sudden moment of realisation using the atmospheric artistic technique of tenebrism - one which Guercino would go on to use. Caravaggio’s most classical composition, ‘Entombment’ (16021603), also uses light as a metaphor of salvation. Caravaggio’s ‘Taking of Christ’ and Guercino’s ‘Betrayal of Christ’ may be seen at the NGI and the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, respectively.

18


FRIENDS ROOM

@ NATIONAL GALLERY OF IRELAND

The Friends Room in the National Gallery of Ireland is located at No. 5 South Leinster Street, adjacent the Gallery. It was built in 1858 and is a neoclassical building. The historical building includes the Office of the Friends of the National Gallery, the main Friends Room, the Orpen Room and an upstairs area, which is used for functions. The Office had many uses before that for hosting the Friends of the National Gallery. Judging by its current condition, one might not expect that the office was once used as a bathroom shop and a furniture display room. The Room functions as a quiet area and Friends are encouraged to visit it for events, tea and coffee or simple perusal, as an escape from the city. In 2005 renovations began on the Friends Room to incorporate the building into the Millennium Wing of the National Gallery of Ireland to be used by the Friends of the National Gallery. Although it was in a very poor condition, many of its historical features were found to be worth saving. The first recorded owner was Barrister Arthur Wolfe, whose portrait hangs in the Friends Room. Interestingly the second owner was Archibald Hamilton Rowan, leader of the united Irishmen. Both men had starkly contrasting political viewpoints, yet a similar appreciation for aesthetic beauty. On the the Friends Rooms notable owners were interior decorators Thomas Panter & Sons, who used the building to display their works. At the time they used the rooms as a showcase. Thomas Panter & Sons’ pieces still make up an important part of the building and are arguably its most beautiful features to this day. Neoclassical stucco work can be seen in every room on the ceilings. The Office also contains a significant amount of neoclassical painted plasterwork. Its ceiling displays grotesque animal forms surrounded by foliage. They recall images of a small-scale ceiling in an ancient Roman church. Between the Friends Room and the Friends Office are two steel pillars which were found in the building’s back yard during its restoration which has been originated from Scotland and were painted white to emulate classical architecture. The bottom of each pillar has an inscription saying ‘W. Farlane and Sons Glasgow’. They have since been incorporated into the structure to support the building. The staircase is not original. It was copied from that of No. 6 next door. The Friends building was completely separate from the National Gallery until 2002 and did not have a strong correlation with

FRIENDS ROOM, NATIONAL GALLERY OF IRELAND

national artwork. However the building holds many paintings by the likes of Jack B. Yeats, Frederic William Burton and Hugh Douglas Hamilton. Upstairs is a marble fireplace, decorated according to popular Italian style during the building’s first ownership, in the 18th century. One of the images incorporated by the designer into the marble surface is a paintbrush and a paint palette. Before being part of the National Gallery of Ireland this room did not have strong artistic uses. As this building was incorporated into the National Gallery in 2002, the marble fireplace was specially commissioned from a company on Francis street. The fireplaces in both the Friends Office and the Friends Room are not original to the building, they were added in following the restoration which took place in 2008. These were sourced by the Office of Public Works, who took part in the restoration of the building. Hanging high above are chandeliers which were also not part of the original building, but were added during restoration. However, it is the chandeliers upstairs that have perhaps more historical relevance. They originally belonged to No. 89 Merrion square, where the Friends Room was held until the completion of No. 5’s restoration where it would move for its proximity, strong history and impressive aesthetics. In the Orpen Room, downstairs in the Friends building, there are leather chairs whose frames are discreetly decorated with little gold flowers. On the back of every chair reveals small gold tabs. These would have been used by servants to slide two fingers beneath them and pull out the chairs on their wheels. The chairs were originally part of the Milltown collection of Russborough House. It was from the same collection that the two ornamental mirrors hanging upstairs came from. The Friends Room has had numerous owners and uses. It has been a bathroom shop, a restaurant, a nightclub, a linen warehouse and a furniture display room. Its rich history makes it a perfect location for the promotion of art and architecture through the monthly talks hosted at No. 5. The Friends Room’s history, architectural features and paintings by prolific Irish artists allow viewers a taste of Dublin’s culture throughout the years.

19


DUBLIN CANVAS Dublin Canvas is an idea, a community art project intended to bring flashes of colour and creativity to everyday objects in the City. Less grey, more play. The project takes previously unused public space and transforms it into canvases to help brighten up the City. Making Dublin a more beautiful place to live, work and visit.

‘TINTIN IN DUBLIN’ BY GRÁINNE TYNAN FOUR COURTS LUAS, DUBLIN 7

‘BOOKCASE’ BY CATHAL MCCOY & HOLLY JOHNSON CAPEL STREET, DUBLIN 1

‘I’LL PAINT RAINBOWS OVER YOUR BLUE’ BY ADW ARRAN QUAY, DUBLIN 7

‘NOTHING HAPPENS UNTIL’ BY SINÉAD KELLY CAPEL STREET, DUBLIN 1

20




Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.