Hugh Lane Centenary Print Collection
Friday 9th - Saturday 31st July
In a lasting tribute to Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane's first centenary in 2008, the Gallery invited thirteen artists to collaborate in creating a unique print collection. Mindful of the concept and the ethos of Hugh Lane supporting contemporary practice. The work represents a unique collaboration between Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane and Dorothy Cross, Willie Doherty, Barry Flanagan and Keith Milow, Louis le Brocquy, Ciarán Lennon, Anne Madden, Elizabeth Magill, Brian Maguire, Brian O'Doherty, Kathy Prendergast, Patrick Scott, Sean Scully and Seán Shanahan. Presented in partnership with Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane.
Adm: free
Official opening by Pádraic E. Moore, exhibitions curator, on Friday 9th July at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane website.
Meadowsweet - A Retrospective: Celebrating the Artist Ger Mayock
LINENHALL GALLERY Friday 11th June - Saturday 3rd July
This exhibition brings together the work of artist Ger Mayock who died in May 2006. Ger grew up in Ross West, near Castlebar, in a family home where love and respect for traditional Irish music and culture were nurtured. Ger’s childhood experiences went on to inform and inspire a body of work including sculpture, writing, film, music composition and photography. A close bond with wood and stone dominated Ger’s work during the final years of his life and he produced a very significant body of sculpture, much of which is on view at this retrospective exhibition. In Ger's own words, "The carvings that I make are capturing a moment. Be it from a dream or a reality. Like an image or, more accurately, a state of mind we have all known from a day or from a lifetime common to us all and unique to each one of us."The exhibition also includes Ger's writings, photography, and his short film War. A book celebrating Ger's life and work will be launched on the opening night.
Adm.: free
Official opening on Friday 11th June at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Marie Padden - Tombs
VISUAL ART Friday 7th May - Saturday 5th June
The first solo show by recent GMIT graduate and Linenhall Medal 2008 winner Marie Padden, comprising works in oils, acrylics and mixed media. According to the artist, “This work portrays the uneasy relationship between death, renewal and immortality. There is a deliberate ambiguity in order that the viewer can complete the cycle. Is there hope or sadness to be found here?”Adm.: free
The exhibition is supported by an Exhibition Assistance Award from Mayo County Council.
John Brady - Bradys Prado
VISUAL ART Friday 9th April - Saturday 1st May
An exhibition of paintings “made as a response to looking at paintings” by John Brady, based on sketchbooks the artist made during time the artist spent in the Prado, the Louvre and the Musée d’Orsay. Born in Westport, John is a recognised artist of long standing, and his work is in a number of prestigious collections. John is currently based in Galway.Adm.: free
Official opening on Friday 9th April at 7.30pm. All welcome.
John Brady's website.
Joe Wilson - High Landscapes
VISUAL ART Friday 5th - Wednesday 31st March
An exhibition of oil paintings, drawings and monoprints by artist Joe Wilson. “This recent work is a result of walking in Ireland and Spain with most of the work from two residences at the Centre d'Art i Natura in Farrera, a village high in the Spanish Pyrenees.” Joe Wilson was born in 1947 in Bolton, England and studied at Manchester College of Art and Design. He came to live in Ireland in 1979. He now teaches at NCAD and lives and works in Co. Wicklow.Adm.: free
Official opening on Friday 5th March at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Private Collections - Public View
LINENHALL GALLERY Friday 5th- Friday 26th February
An exhibition representing works from private collections by some of Ireland’s foremost visual artists, “from Shinnors’ kites to McSweeney’s bog pools, and everything in between”. A selection from private collections by Linenhall Chairman Eamon Smith.Adm.: free
Flight of Fancy - The Mayo Artists Show
LINENHALL GALLERY, FOYER, EVERYWHERE! Friday 4th December - Saturday 30th January
Here it is again! The Linenhall Arts Centre’s ever-popular biennial celebration of the visual arts in Mayo makes a welcome return. The selected show, inspired by the theme Flight of Fancy, presents a cornucopia of work in all manner of media and offers a fascinating snapshot of the breadth of arts practice in the county. And with something for all tastes (and prices), this might just be the ideal opportunity to find that elusive and unique Christmas present…Official opening on Friday 4th December at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Adm.: free
Sue Morris - The Obsessive Compulsive Drawings
LINENHALL GALLERY Friday 6th - Saturday 28th November
An exhibition of drawing, printmaking text and collage. According to the artist: “my current work is an attempt as a visual artist to interpret, track, record and acknowledge the experience and impact of chronic illness within the family unit. By referencing the language of maps, plans, geometry, visual puzzles and graphic constructs, intersected and overlaid with drawn suggestions of organic matter and accumulated marks, I explore the interplay of quasi-formal systems with more human gestural and random image making. Instinctively, these works start small and concentrated but often move into larger formats. Work that begins on the wall starts to shift from 2D into relief, from collage into bricolage, thus blurring the distinction between drawing and installation.”Official opening on Friday 6th November at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Adm.: free
Sacred Heart Exhibition
LINENHALL FOYER Thursday 5th - Thursday 26th November
A colourful and vibrant exhibition of paintings by a group of artists in long-term care at the Sacred Heart Hospital in Castlebar. The exhibition is the latest in a series resulting from a groundbreaking scheme initiated by Mayo County Council in 1999 with artist Deirdre Walsh, an initiative now supported by the HSE. The project has enabled and empowered many long term residential service users over the years. The scheme is currently facilitated by artist Tom Meskell. As Deirdre observes, “Age or infirmity does not hinder creativity.” Come along and see how right she is.Official opening Thursday 5th November at 2pm. All welcome
Cathy Hack & Gráinne O’Reilly - The Owl and the Pussycat
LINENHALL GALLERY Friday 2nd - Saturday 31st October
Welcome to the wonderful world of The Owl and The Pussycat, a charming exhibition of prints, paintings and drawings based on Edward Lear’s much-loved children’s poem. Delightful and engaging, the exhibition has been devised and created with a young audience in mind by artists Gráinne O’Reilly and Cathy Hack. Cathy is a Foxford-based print-maker with vast experience in the design and delivery of visual arts programmes for young people. Gráinne is one of Mayo’s most prolific painters and her work has been exhibited throughout the country, including solo shows at the Linenhall Arts Centre and Custom House Studios.Adm.: free
Lundbeck Art Exhibition
LINENHALL FOYER Wednesday 7th - Friday 16th October
The annual visual art exhibition resulting from the Lundbeck Art Initiative, which was established to encourage artistic expression among those using the mental health services throughout Ireland, with the aim of creating an opportunity for a better understanding of mental illness in the community and allowing those suffering from such illness a greater means of self-expression.Official opening on Wednesday 7th October at 2.30pm. All welcome.
Angie Grimes - Coast
LINENHALL GALLERY Friday 4th - Saturday 26th September
An exhibition of oil paintings inspired by Ireland’s coastline, from locations in Kerry, Mayo, Donegal, and North County Dublin. According to Co. Dublin artist Angie Grimes, “the work is executed in thick impasto and depicts, I hope, the glorious wonders of the ever-changing vista of our coast and shore.” Having grown up in the seaside town of Skerries, Angie’s paintings express both personal and cultural histories. “I have a deep affinity for the elemental power of water and the mysterious forces of nature. My paintings evolve through a process of rich layers of pigment, the rhythms of application creating depths and swells. Colour is used to heighten and expand the work’s emotional range, drawn from the lyrical and emotive narrative in my art.”Angie Grime's website
Official opening by Michelle Mulherin, Leas Cathaoirleach, Mayo County Council, on Friday 4th September at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Adm.: free
"Impassioned engagement." - Aidan Dunne, Irish Times
Betty Gannon - States of Flux
LINENHALL GALLERY Friday 7th - Saturday 29th August
An exhibition of drawings that explore architectural forms and spaces, inspired by the construction and demolition that in recent years became a ubiquitous feature of the changing face of Ireland. According to the Westport artist: “I am interested in the need we have to constantly change our environment, and what happens when we go about these changes. For a short period, locations are filled with great energy, which I attempt to recreate through my work.” Gannon explores this equilibrium of chaos and order through drawing, using a great variety of mark-making. The results are evocative and expressive. This is her first solo show. This exhibition is grant-assisted by Mayo County Council.Adm: free
Official opening by John McHugh, Manager of Custom House Studios, Westport on Friday 7th August at 7.30pm. All welcome.
CANCELLED - Con Kelleher Photographic Exhibition
LINENHALL PRINT GALLERY Friday 31st July - Saturday 8th August
CANCELLED - Due to factors beyond our control. Apologies for any inconvenience caused.
Self-Portraits from Mayo Schools
LINENHALL FOYER Tuesday 7th July-Saturday 29th August
An exhibition of self-portraits by students from Scoil Raifteirí, Snugboro NS and Cornanool NS, which was part of the international Belfast Children’s Festival in May 2009. This expressive and engaging show resulted from the Linenhall’s ongoing Visual Art Programme for Schools, which introduces primary school children to contemporary visual arts through a programme of gallery talks, discussions and workshops. Inspired by Will O’Kane’s Linenhall show, in all 288 paintings were created, of which the work shown is a selection. The young artists were facilitated by the Linenhall’s Orla Henihan and artists Denise Clarke and Marianne Heemskerk.Adm.: free
Official opening on Tuesday 7th July at 3.00pm. All welcome.
Linda Hunt - Natural Rhythms
LINENHALL GALLERY Friday 3rd July - Saturday 1st August
A suite of limited edition collograph and dry point prints created by artist Linda Hunt in response to her experience of landscape, seascape, natural forms and shapes. In the words of the artist herself, "Process is an important element in making the work and it is one of continuous discovery and communication with the medium. I like the contrast the medium provides between definite forms and shapes and more nebulous qualities. Fluidity, line, layering and texture are all important elements in this process as are spatial relationships. Colour is rooted in natural sources and is both animated and subdued." The results "observe the formal elements of visual rhetoric and reflect my personal connection with my immediate environment."Adm.: free
Official opening by Mary Margaret Robinson, MA on Friday 3rd July at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Luisne - 4 Years On
VISUAL ART Tuesday 16th June - Thursday 2nd July
The Luisne Project, Ballinrobe celebrates the colourful and engaging results of four years of a unique art programme at Crann Mor Centre, Ballinrobe. This exciting body of work showcases painting and sculpture by participants of Crann Mor Centre, facilitated by Breda Murphy. For more information see www.artluisne.comLuisne Art Project is supported by Western Care and Mayo County Council Arts Office.
Adm.: free
Aileen Lambert - Come and Gone
VISUAL ART Friday 5th - Saturday 27th June
Working in video, sound and performance Aileen Lambert’s practice is concerned with the relationship which the body has with its environment. According to artist and writer Shirley MacWilliam, “Throughout the works of Come and Gone, earth, air, water and the heat of the sun and of the body are drawn into conjunctions - a finger melts through the ice of a puddle; a one-hour shadow cast across a frosty field creates a patch of unthawed grass; a voice is made visible as condensation in the night air.” Aileen lives and works in Co. Wexford. Her work has been presented nationally and internationally.Adm.: free
An Post C Both Sides: An Exhibition in Postcards
VISUAL ART Tuesday 2nd - Saturday 13th June
In 2007, An Post launched An Post C Both Sides, asking people from all over the country create a postcard relating to their experience of Ireland in 2008. The response to the project was that people from all areas of the community contributed to a dynamic, informative collection of social history and art. An exhibition of those postcards, curated by Irish curator Helen Carey alongside Westmeath artists Teresa Doyle and Edel O’Reilly Flynn, appears here as part of national tour. “The huge response to the invitation from An Post indicates the project caught the public imagination,” said Helen Carey. The fascinating and engaging results are here for all to see.Adm.: free
Leah Beggs - Soft Day, Thank God
VISUAL ART Friday 1st - Saturday 30th May
Leah’s paintings have always concerned the surrounding landscape. She paints from memory, but is inspired by her ongoing relationship with the Connemara countryside. In this latest body of work Leah observes that “whilst the subject matter is acknowledged as landscape, the way in which it is executed captures the climatic essence that is present at that moment in time. The surrounding landscape and inherent weather is seeping into the subconscious of the work. This latest exhibition is a series of works harnessing this change.” The results are atmospheric, evocative and lyrical. Leah lives and works in Co. Galway.Adm.: free
Gary Robinson - In-between Lines and Circles
Friday 3rd - Saturday 25th April
An exhibition of recent paintings by Longford-based artist Gary Robinson. “These new paintings are an attempt to simplify our already overflowing visual memory. I would like to involve the viewer in looking at landscapes, streetscapes and inscapes through portals and openings that can easily go un-noticed.”Official opening on Friday 3rd April at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Will O’Kane - The Lure of Presentiment
Friday 6th - Saturday 28th March
An exhibition of recent portrait-based paintings by Castlebar-born artist Will O’Kane. In his own words: “I like archaic modes of production such as portraiture. It offers a way into a painting that comes with a whole history and knowledge. It abounds with clichés and preformed attitudes: such as the authenticity of and sympathy towards the sitter, the emotive power of paint or the phenomenological aspects of perception. I use this as a kind of shorthand or motive and then skewer such notions with ideas of intentionality and consumption. For me, what is intended is a practice that has doubt and scepticism as cornerstones of any initial expression, a presentiment of what is a possible and valid form of communication that tentatively heads towards a harmony and balance, even at some point of transcending the materiality of the art object.” Official opening on Friday 6th March at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Michael McSwiney - Recent Paintings
VISUAL ART Friday 6th - Saturday 28th February
Michael Mc Swiney portrays a world of abandoned, often threatening panoramas of land and sea through layered, textured, sometimes ‘abstract expressionistic’ images inspired from memory. “The creative process is somewhat subconscious in that there is no pre-conceived image. The image is almost excavated from applying and removing paint to canvas until the image forms itself; a dialog between artist and materials. A sense of elusiveness is central to these mood-orientated images, where through alienating colours and strong atmospheric effects, these paintings portray an unnerving picture of nature.” Since graduating from NCAD, Michael has travelled and exhibited widely. He has recently returned to live in Ireland, and is now based in West Cork. Adm.: free
Official opening on Friday 6th February at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Lucy Hill & Almha Roche - Crickets Sing With Their Legs
Friday 5th December - Saturday 31st January Official opening by Yew Tee Theatre director John Breen on Friday 5th December at 7.30pm. All welcome.
An exhibition of recent paintings by Tuam-born Almha Roche and Newport-based Lucy Hill, two artists “with contrasting styles but similar objectives.” “Having each created a body of work it seems odd to formulate an explanation for something that can't be captured in words, as with the cricket attempting to explain its 'song' through another language. Images are made, music is composed, as the result of a natural need to absorb and reflect the world around us. For this exhibition we have each made our own particular 'song' and presented it in unison to see what new sounds it can make.”
Adm.: free
In Her Shoes
Tuesday 25th November - Wednesday 10th December
To mark the 2008 16 Days of Action Opposing Violence Against Women, Mayo Women's Support Services has organised an exhibition of women's shoes, each pair representing a woman who has been killed in Ireland. 146 women have been murdered in Ireland by their partners/ex-partners since 1996 (figures compiled by Women's Aid Homicide Watch.) Each pair of shoes will have the name of the woman and the year of her murder. The exhibition will also display posters and information regarding the 16 Days of Action. Adm.: free
Stephen Rinn - Intimate Ground
VISUAL ART Friday 7th - Saturday 29th November
An exhibition of atmospheric paintings by artist Stephen Rinn. Living near the sea at Howth has given Stephen an intimate knowledge of natural elements, out of which emerged an abstract dialogue concerning themes of open and closed spaces relating to the sea/shore geography. “There is a landscape narrative in the work which relies on impressions received during these visits. I am not interested in describing a literal sense of landscape and so I rely more on abstract values which would be evocative of the area visited. They are not specific to time and place as a photograph would be, I think of them more as painted spaces. The finished paintings are a vocabulary of gestures and markmaking that hint at or give a nod to these areas visited.” Those areas include Co. Kerry, the Beara Peninsula in West Cork, and Spain.Adm.: free
Official opening on Friday 7th November at 7.30pm. All welcome
Deirdre Walsh - Discovered Moments
Friday 3rd October - Saturday 1st November
An exhibition of new paintings by Mayo artist Deirdre Walsh, covering subjects from dusty old collectibles, old dolls and teddy bears to gardens and landscape, all united by Deirdre’s painterly impressionism and “a desire to play out the notes of colour revealed by brief and changing light.”Official opening on Friday 3rd October at 7.30pm. All welcome.
Female Artists of the Twentieth Century from the Niland Collection
Monday 8th - Saturday 27th September
This exhibition, which is drawn from the Niland Collection, celebrates the work of female, Irish artists from the 20th century. The Niland collection features a large amount of work by female artists, and looked at together these works provide a comprehensive survey of the changing themes and practices of women artists throughout the century. The current redevelopment of the Model Centre has presented a great opportunity for many of the most significant of these works to be exhibited further afield, and this show features work by leading Irish artists including Mainie Jellet, Evie Hone, Mary Swanzy, Norah McGuinness, Nano Reid, Dorothy Cross, Kathy Prendergast and Alice Maher. This exhibition has been curated by Emer McGarry and organised in collaboration with the Model Arts and Niland Gallery, Sligo. Adm.: free
