|
CIRCA 113 Update
 |
Andrew Duggan: CentreStage, installation shot at Siamsa Tíre Arts Centre and Theatre, curtains, two bunkers / props, double projection; courtesy the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon |
Artist on Location
Cork-born, Dublin-raised, Dingle-based artist Andrew Duggan is the recipient of the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon's Location One residency valued at 32,000 euro. Administered by the Irish American Cultural Institute on behalf of the Arts Council, the residency offers one annual fellowship to an artist. A working studio space is provided for ten months at Location One, New York. The award includes provision for accommodation and a monthly stipend of $1,500.
Location One is a not-for-profit arts centre whose mission is "to foster the convergence of classic and new media for the development and presentation of new work. Emerging and established artists in all media are invited to collaborate and experiment with advanced technological tools." The residency award by the Arts Council can be seen as a continuation of the 'P.S.1' legacy; also based in New York, being sent on a P.S.1 residency was the most monetarily valuable prize offered by the Arts Council until the scheme finished a few years back.
Art business
At the Allianz Business2Arts Awards this year, among the prizes to note was the Best collaboration by a small business award, which went to Eurojet Ireland and the Royal Hibernian Academy. We report on pages 98 - 100 of this issue on this year's Eurojet show. John Sisk & Son and ev+a , Limerick's annual visual-arts fest, were highly commended under the Best collaboration with continuity award.
Artists in the Dock / to the Four
Despite the appearance of Space: Architecture for Art, the CIRCA publication which contains a stunning directory of contemporary art spaces throughout the island of Ireland, new spaces continue to crop up. For instance, there's Leitrim's new Arts Centre, the Dock, in Carrick on Shannon. In a renovated building, it contains three galleries and already boasts an impressive programme even before its official opening this September.
And there's Four, on Burgh Quay, Dublin 2. "Four is devoted to the development of an uninhibited artistic exploration of ideas, discourses and new trends in contemporary art and its practices." The space kicks off with Xyler Jane this November. The following exhibition, curated by Mark Garry, will include works by Robert Carr, Paul McKinley and Sufjan Stevens.
Iceberg!
It's a project many want to sink. If the heat of argument were enough, it could alternatively melt away. It's also a project that lends itself to endless metaphor: Rita Duffy's proposal to tow an iceberg to Belfast. Why do such a thing? It's about 'working through' memories - both of the Titanic, doomed pride of Harland and Wolff - and of Belfast's more recent troubled waters.
Logistically, it is an enormous undertaking, and it seems the artist is in it for the long haul (apologies!) - with a possible target date being the one hundredth anniversary of the launching (1911) or sinking (1912) of the vessel. While the idea has piqued the curiosity of TV, radio and other media around the globe, it has met with some fierce opposition closer to home. The 'no' side is being led by, among others, Joffy Donaldson. He has (by 15 August 2005) gathered 786 signed-up members for his campaign. According to him, "Many of those who profess themselves 'artists' promise to enliven the protest [this winter] with 'giant papier mâché icebreakers', 'depressed polar bear suits' and other such colourful performances..." Apparently "at least a third of our members protest at the proposed iceberg on aesthetic grounds, saying it is an ugly proposal or that it is out of step with what is current in the field of sculpture. The remaining members of the campaign claim it is either impracticable or an insult to those who have encountered icebergs in less frivolous circumstances (notably, of course, the passengers and crew of the Titanic)."
But according to Duffy, whose father served his apprenticeship in the Harland and Wolff shipyard, "The ICEBERG project opens up the narrative and imagines other possibilities; it has the promise of revelation; it is a celebration of how we might begin to see ourselves and who we might become...Times have changed, the big thaw has begun and the water that runs from the ice will alchemise the fire and quench the burn."
New people in charge
Some important appointments took place this June:
- Sarah Glennie, the Republic of Ireland's Commissioner for the Venice Biennale this year, has been made the new Director of the Model Arts Centre and Niland Gallery, Sligo.
- Marianne O'Kane, frequent CIRCA contributor, has been made Chief Executive Officer of the Wexford Arts Centre.
- A slew of new faces now grace the Board of the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin. They include three artists: Valerie Connor, Áine O'Driscoll and Brian Ranelow.
Prize man
Peter Richards, artist and Directory of the Golden Thread Gallery, Belfast, is the inaugural winner of the Curfew Tower Award. The prize is unusual. It is open to artists who have been in residence in the Curfew Tower, Cushendall, Co. Antrim, and it is awarded by popular acclaim of the citizens of Cushendall. Richards apparently won hands down, when work of previous residents of the tower was put on display on 10 August. According to the press release, "The winner of the award receives a small bronze cast of the Curfew Tower and no fat cheque." If you are surprised by the somewhat truculent tone of the statement, Google "Bill Drummond."
 |
Terry Pawson Architects: artist's impression of the National Centre for Contemporary Art (VISUAL); courtesy Carlow County Council |
VISUALise this
Images have been released of VISUAL, the National Centre for Contemporary Art and Performance Theatre, which is scheduled to open to the public in early 2007. The design plan that won the RIAI architectural design competition for the project, which initially attracted 119 entries, was proposed by Terry Pawson Architects, an award-winning London-based practice specialising in the area of public and cultural spaces. The centre will be equipped with a wide range of facilities to accommodate exhibitions and events, such as retractable seating, climate control, and adaptable interior spaces. The design of the centre will reportedly follow its function: to promote openness to new art forms, media, and gallery presentation.
VISUAL can be seen as the long-awaited acknowledgment of the vigorous visual-arts scene in Carlow and environs. Éigse is probably the best-know of Carlow's visual-arts-dominated events, with Visualise Carlow coming a close second.
Meanwhile, the new jewel in University College Cork’s crown, the Lewis Glucksman Gallery, continues to draw accolades to itself. Having been singled out for an RIBA Award in June, it is now shortlisted for the very prestigious RIBA Stirling Prize.
Do
you have an opinion on this article? If so, please click here for our comments form.
| No reader feedback so far - awaiting your input! |
|
|
