In celebration of physical encounters with art – and the role of writing in recording these experiences – this issue focuses almost exclusively on the many interesting and vibrant exhibitions taking place around the country over the last few months.
Among numerous Exhibition Profiles, Mary Flanaghan interviews artist Anna Spearman about her recent solo show, ‘Loose Parts’ at Roscommon Arts Centre; Dr Yvonne Scott reflects on Mary-Ruth Walsh’s touring exhibition, ‘SKIN DEEP’; and Davey Moore outlines the recent group show, ‘Double Estate’ at the Pearse Museum, presenting works from the OPW State Art Collection.
In addition, Jane Morrow reviews the recent exhibition series, ‘Mediating Signals’ at Flax Art Studios, curated by Edy Fung; Luan Gallery outlines the thematic inquiries of their current show, ‘Queer As You Are’; Sinéad Keogh discusses the curatorial inquiries underpinning ‘I Am What I Am’ at Ballina Arts Centre; and Dr Barbara Dawson reflects on the 20th anniversary of the Francis Bacon Studio project.
Among festival coverage in this issue, Michael Hill’s column considers the resonance of large-scale international art exhibitions like the Venice Biennale, Jennifer Redmond reviews the visual art programme of Cork Midsummer Festival 2021, and Gwen Burlington considers some of the artworks presented during the second phase of EVA International.
Reviewed in the Critique section are: ‘Sweeny’s Decent’ at An Táin Arts Centre; ‘A Conversation Ensued, Nobody Said A Word’, a two-person show with Colin Darke and Yvonne Kennan at Belfast Exposed; Claire Murphy, ‘Here is Where I Am’ at South Tipperary Arts Centre; ‘The Loneliness of Being German’, a two-person show with Vera Klute and Thomas Brezing at Limerick City Gallery of Art; and ‘The Maternal Gaze’, an online screening programme at IMMA.
In Cornelius Browne’s latest Plein Air column, ‘The Painters in The Trees’, he reflects on painting with his children close to home, while Miguel Amado discusses collections, colonial legacies and ‘art from elsewhere’. John Graham outlines key aspects of his drawing process in his skills column, and Ann Quinn discusses her recent paintings, to be shown in a forthcoming solo exhibition at Taylor Galleries.
VAI member profiles include Carolann Courtney’s interview with John Conway about his durational and multi-disciplinary art practice, and Ingrid Lyons’s reflection on two recent installations by Liliane Puthod.
The Regional Focus for this issue comes from County Waterford, with organisational insights from Síle Penkert (Executive Director, Garter Lane Arts Centre), Paul McAree (Curator, Lismore Castle Arts), Claire Meaney (Director, Waterford Healing Arts Trust) and Jenna Whelan (Director, GOMA Gallery of Modern Art), while visual artists Clare Scott and Sarah Lincoln reflect on the realities of maintaining a visual art practice in the region.
