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Europe's Edge Ireland - The Artist and the Island - View gallery >>
Out of the West - December 2009 - View gallery >>
RE-JOYCE - June 2010 - View Gallery >> |
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| November 2016 |
Where: The Mirror Room, Grand Hotel, Oslo.
When: Thursday 03.11.16 at 19.00 (doors open 18.30)
Click for Tickets >> - Prices: Adults 200,-/Students 150,- + booking fee
PROGRAM
WELCOME
Ambassador of Ireland, Karl Gardner
INTRODUCTRY REMARKS
Petter Fredrik Wille, director of the Norwegian National Human Rights Institution.
CASEMENT, HIS NORWEGIAN CONNECTION AND THE EASTER RISING
Presented by historian and author Bjørn Godøy
EYE -WITNESS - CASEMENT
A dramatic presentation by actor Declan Gorman, drawing on Casement’s Congo Report
INTERMISSION
OUR KIND
A short film by Alan Phelan followed by a Q&A session
Many thanks to our sponsors for Meeting Casement Oslo:
1916/2016 Centenary Celebrations - www.ireland.ie
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
The Grand Hotel - www.grand.no
Publishing House Spartacus - www.spartacus.no
Cappelens Forslag Bookshop - www.cappelensforslag.no
O’Reilly’s Irish Pub - www.oreillys.no
Freddy Fuego Burrito Bar - freddyfuego.no
The Oslo GAA - On Facebook
Norwegian Irish Business Association - niba.no
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Where: Litteraturhuset Bergen, Auditoriet
When: Friday 04.11.2016 at 19.00 (doors open at 18.30)
Click for Tickets >> - Prices: Adults 200,-/Students 150,- + booking fee
PROGRAM
WELCOME & INTRODUCTRY REMARKS
Ambassador of Ireland, Karl Gardner
CASEMENT, HIS NORWEGIAN CONNECTION AND THE EASTER RISING
Presented by historian and author Bjørn Godøy
OUR KIND
A short film by Alan Phelan followed by a Q&A session
INTERMISSION
CASEMENT: BRISTISH CONSUL - HUMANITARIAN - IRISH REVOLUTIONARY
A one man play performed by actor Bartholomew Ryan
Many thanks to our sponsors for Meeting Casement Bergen:
1916/2016 Centenary Celebrations - www.ireland.ie
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Publishing House Spartacus - www.spartacus.no
Cappelens Forslag Bookshop - www.cappelensforslag.no
The Oslo GAA - On Facebook
Norwegian Irish Business Association - niba.no
A very Special thank you for all their help and hard work goes to the Bergen Irish society - www.bergenirish.com
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A brief History:
Born in Dublin in 1864, Casement served as a distinguished British Consul in Mozambique, Angola, the Congo Free State and Brazil. Described by a number of international academics as “having a good claim to be the father of twentieth-century human rights investigation”, he was honoured in 1905 for the Casement Report on abuses of native workers in the Congo Free State and was awarded a knighthood in 1911 for his important investigations on human rights abuses in the Putumayo region of Peru.
Casement’s disillusionment with imperialism led to his involvement with Irish nationalism and the struggle for independence. In 1914 he travelled from New York to Berlin via Christiania, as Oslo was then called, in order to secure German support for an armed uprising in Ireland. Travelling under the assumed name of James E. Landy, he stayed at the Grand Hotel with his Norwegian travel companion Adler Christensen from the 28th to the 30th of October.
His brief stay in Oslo was marked by high intrigue in what is referred to as the Findlay Affair. According to Casement’s version, Christensen was brought to the British Legation where he was offered a large cash bribe if Casement was “knocked on the head”. In contrast, British Secret Service papers claimed that it was Adler Christensen who made the approach and “implied that their relationship was of an unnatural nature and consequently he had great power over this man”. This may have provided London with the first intimation that Casement was homosexual.
Casement met with limited success in Germany and returned to Ireland by German submarine just before the Easter Rising in April 1916. He was captured almost immediately by British military forces. A shipment of arms for the rebellion followed the next day on a German cargo vessel disguised as Norwegian, but was sank by its captain to avoid capture.
Extracts from his diaries, detailing his homosexual activity, were circulated by British intelligence during his trial for treason in order to undermine support for Casement. He was executed on 3 August 1916 and was buried in an unmarked grave at Pentoville Prison. In 1965 his remains were repatriated to Ireland and were afforded a state funeral with full military honours.
About our contributors:
Ambassador Gardner
Embassy of Ireland
Petter Fredrik Wille
Director of the Norwegian National Human Rights Institution |
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Bjørn Godøy
 Bjørn is a well-known Norwegian writer and historian. He was nominated for the National Book award in 2014. His talk will make special mention of Casement’s stay at the Grand Hotel in 1914 and the high intrigue of the resulting Findaly Affair.
His most recent book Dobbeltspill (Double Game) was published by Spartacus in September 2016 and focuses on the relationship between Roger Casement and his Norwegian companion from Moss, Adler Christensen. Dobbeltspill explores the improbable relationship between Irish revolutionary hero Roger Casement and his Norwegian friend and lover, Eivind Adler Christensen. As World War 1 raged, the two set off for Germany where Casement planned to gather the government’s support for Irish separatism. Within weeks, Christensen went from a ragged existence as an unemployed sailor to becoming a key player in Casement’s vendetta against the British Empire.
Bjørn Godøy (1969) has studied film and history. He has previously written two documentary books on Norwegian history.
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Declan Gorman
 About Eye – Witness – Casement
August 1916: On the eve of his trial for treason, a reluctant Roger Casement is persuaded by his defense counsel to revisit his famous “Congo Report” of thirteen years earlier. A damning indictment of atrocities carried out in Africa by agents of the corrupt King Leopold of Belgium, the report had elevated Casement to the status of hero in liberal England. Rehearsing it now might be helpful to his case. From his clammy cell, the doomed prisoner recalls the sub-tropical settlements of the Upper Congo River where he gave voice to men, women and children suffering torture and genocide at the hands of plundering invaders. But that voyage of witness led in time to Casement's questioning of even the so-called progressive 'civilizing' values of the British Empire on whose consular missions he faithfully served. The long night spent re-living his celebrated hour as the father of modern human rights advocacy leads to a cold dawn where he faces the inevitable fate of the liberal witness who has turned revolutionary activist.
About Declan
Declan is a freelance theatre director, performer and writer with over 25 years’ experience in the Irish theatre scene.
His dramatic presentation, Eye – Witness - Casement draws on two books as key sources - The Eyes of Another Race: Roger Casement's Congo Report and 1903 Diary edited by Seamas O Siochain and Michael O’Sullivan and Imperialist, Rebel, Revolutionary by Seamas O Siochain
Declan Gorman: Photo by PeterGorman / Burrenworks
Alan Phelan
 About Our Kind
Our Kind imagines a future for Roger Casement had he not been executed in 1916. This film is set 25 years later in 1941, where Casement is in exile in Norway with his former manservant and now partner Adler Christensen. As the story unfolds those closest to him betray their relationships with him, paralleling Casement’s isolation from his homeland, beliefs and the ideals of the Rising.
This is a deliberate challenge to audiences and the prevailing 1916 narrative as Casement is not presented as hero or icon; neither liberated nor closeted. Instead we encounter Casement as an ordinary human being with ordinary human needs, emotions, and failings.
About Alan
Alan studied at Dublin City University and Rochester Institute of Technology, New York. His practice involves the production of objects, participatory projects, curating and writing. These all inform, combine and contribute to an interest in the narrative potential surrounding an artwork. This can be exploited or explored from actual and historical events, ideas, things and places as well as their fictional counterparts. Working in the museum and archive sector has shaped this approach somewhat but more as a counterpoint than agency.
Alan Phelan’s short film Our Kind was commissioned by Dublin City Gallery, The Hugh Lane as part of their 1916-2016 Centenary Programme. Most of the exterior shots were filmed in the Hardangerfjord region in January 2016. The film won the Hotron Éigse Art Prize at the Carlow Arts Festival this year.
Bartholomew Ryan
 About CASEMENT: British Consul – Humanitarian – Irish Revolutionary
Sir Roger Casement: Irish patriot, anti-slavery campaigner, homosexual, traitor… This challenging play offers a unique insight into the inner life of one of history’s more complicated figures. A monologue in two acts, Casement is set in Lisbon, a city that served as a way-station during the journeys undertaken by the real-life Casement for his work in Portuguese Africa and Brazil. In the first act, he is returning from the Congo, where his experiences while writing the famous report on atrocities committed against workers in the rubber plantations have initiated a change in his political awareness -- a nascent anti-colonialism. The second act, which takes place on his return journey from investigating further acts of violence against plantation workers in Peru several years later, shows the development of his thoughts, allowing us to connect a radicalizing Irish nationalism to the personal story of a man out of synch with his times.
About Bartholomew
Bartholomew was born in Dublin. His ‘questing’ spirit has led him to embrace an itinerant working life as researcher, writer, composer, and musician. Pursuing academic interests in modern philosophy, critical theory and modernist literature, he moved away from Ireland to study in Denmark, Germany, and Portugal, where he currently holds a postdoctoral fellowship at the Universidade Nova de Lisboa. His numerous publications focus especially on Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Fernando Pessoa, and James Joyce. His scholarly and artistic works orbit around the central motif of ‘transformation,’ which takes into account the masks, journeys and (multiple) identities that define the modern human condition. His first book, Kierkegaard’s Indirect Politics: Interludes with Lukács, Schmitt, Benjamin and Adorno, was published in 2014. He is also the singer-songwriter and guitarist of the evolving international music project ‘The Loafing Heroes’ (http://www.theloafingheroes.com/)who released a successful fifth album entitled The Baron in the Trees in May 2016.
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| November 2015 |
The Night of the Dead II ... The Sequel
Friday - 06.11.15 – 18.30
Cappelens Forslag, Bernt Ankersgt. 4, Oslo - www.cappelensforslag.no
Due to popular demand, Irish Art Oslo was delighted to announce details of a unique opportunity to own a very special edition of James Joyce’s short story, THE DEAD. On Friday the 6th of November there was a public lottery held and the lucky winner walked away with this limited edition handmade book.
On June 17th we held the Norwegian launch for THE DEAD and the idea of raffling a copy by public lottery was floated by someone in attendance. We are delighted to bring this great idea to fruition.
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The draw took place on Friday 6 of November 2015 at 18.30 and the winning ticket was selected by Professor Juan Christian Pellicer.
The event was held at Cappelens Forslag, Bernt Ankersgt. 4, 0183 Oslo and featured:
• A talk about The Dead by Juan Christian Pellicer, Professor of English Literature, University of Oslo
• A talk on Joyce and Censorship by John Fitzgerald of Irish Art Oslo
About the book:
THE DEAD is a limited edition handmade book, reproducing the original 1914 text of Joyce’s short story, together with hand printed illustrations by the American graphic artist Robert Berry. It is co-published by Stoney Road Press and the James Joyce Centre, to mark the centenary of the publication of Dubliners.
‘The Dead’, the final and longest story of James Joyce’s collection Dubliners, is recognised as one of the most accomplished short stories in the English language and stands as a deft, subtle portrait of everyday life in turn-of-the-century Dublin.
Released one hundred years ago last year, Joyce struggled to have his collection published over nine years, submitting the book eighteen times to a total of fifteen publishers. Writing to the book’s eventual publisher Grant Richards in 1906, Joyce stated that his intention was “to write a chapter of the moral history of my country and I chose Dublin for the scene because that city seemed to be the center of paralysis.”
The book is limited to 150 copies and is letterpress printed by hand on a Swiss proofing press. The illustrations are hand drawn by the artist and transferred to letterpress plates and each one is then hand printed with the text. The paper is 250 gsm cotton rag and the book is hand bound by Antiquarian Bookcrafts in Dublin and presented with a matching slip case.
Read more about the book here >>
PLEASE CHECK OUR FACEBOOK PAGE >>
www.cappelensforslag.no
www.irishart.no
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| June 2015 |
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THE NIGHT OF THE DEAD
Wednesday - 17.06.15 – 18.30
Cappelens Forslag, Bernt Ankersgt. 4, Oslo - www.cappelensforslag.no
Irish Art, Oslo in conjunction with Cappelens Forslag, proudly presented an evening for the Norwegian launch of a very special limited edition of James Joyce’s short story The Dead co-published by Stoney Road Press and the James Joyce Center, Dublin.
This was a fringe event in connection with The Oslo Bloomsday Celebrations. For more info see: www.irishsociety.no
Click on the image to the right to enlarge
The evening featured:
* Dramatic readings from the book by actor Declan Gorman
* Dr Sam McManus: Ireland Blooms: Joyce and contemporary Ireland
* Plus more surprises
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It was possible to view the only copy available in any bookshop in northern Europe of this beautiful limited edition handmade book.
About the book:
THE DEAD is a limited edition handmade book, reproducing the original 1914 text of Joyce's short story, together with hand printed illustrations by the American graphic artist Robert Berry. It is co-published by Stoney Road Press and the James Joyce Centre, to mark the centenary of the publication of Dubliners.
'The Dead', the final and longest story of James Joyce's collection Dubliners, is recognised as one of the most accomplished short stories in the English language and stands as a deft, subtle portrait of everyday life in turn-of-the-century Dublin.
Released one hundred years ago last year, Joyce struggled to have his collection published over nine years, submitting the book eighteen times to a total of fifteen publishers. Writing to the book’s eventual publisher Grant Richards in 1906, Joyce stated that his intention was “to write a chapter of the moral history of my country and I chose Dublin for the scene because that city seemed to be the centre of paralysis.”
The book is limited to 150 copies and is letterpress printed by hand on a Swiss proofing press. The illustrations are hand drawn by the artist and transferred to letterpress plates and each one is then hand printed with the text. The paper is 250 gsm cotton rag and the book is hand bound by Antiquarian Bookcrafts in Dublin and presented with a matching slip case.
Read more about the book on: http://www.stoneyroadpress.com/books/the-dead/
Dramatic readings from the book by actor Declan Gorman
Having spent so much time researching and adapting characters from James Joyce’s collection of short stories for his one man show The Dubliners Dilemma, we cannot think of anyone better to deliver a dramatized reading from The Dead.
Actor Declan Gorman, performed his one man show at the Ibsen Museum at The Oslo Bloomsday Celebrations on the 16th June.
For more info see: www.irishsociety.no and www.bachelorswalkdublin.com
Dr Sam McManus – Ireland Blooms: Joyce and contemporary Ireland
Sam McManus from Irrgrønn Productions fame (amongst many other things) spoke on Joyce and contemporary Ireland.
irrgrønn.com
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| May / June 2015 |
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Untitled/Orchestra, mixed media – 1994
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"AT THE ARTS CLUB" - Eamonn O’Doherty (1939 – 2011)
When: 21st May – 11th June 2015
Where: United Arts Club, 3 Upper Fitzwilliam Street, Dublin 2.
Irish Art, Oslo was very proud to present this exhibition which represents work selected from over fifty years of O’Doherty’s involvement with the Irish art scene. At the Arts Club included painting, print and drawing unconnected to the artist’s well known public art practice and served to highlight his many other skills and use of diverse mediums. Work from the artist’s studio, that has not previously been exhibited wascalso featured.
Eamonn O'Doherty would have first visited the United Arts Club in the early sixties and this was to start an enduring relationship. Sculptor John Behan delivered the opening address on Thursday the 21st of May at 8 pm.
Irish Art Oslo was also pleased to offer for sale limited edition prints of an untitled composition (provisionally titled Orchestra), which was originally commissioned for use as a poster at the United Arts Club for the Markievicz Medal Competition for Musical Composition in 1994.
This archival pigment print was limited to an edition of 30 and had been printed by Ireland's leading fine art publishing house, Stoney Road Press. Printed on Somerset Enhanced Velvet 255gsm paper, it could be purchased framed or unframed. Each print cames with a signed and numbered Certificate of Authenticity.
Curator, John Fitzgerald gave a talk about the exhibition on the last night, 11th June at 8pm. The exhibiton was a great success.
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| June 2014 |
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"SELECTED" - Eamonn O’Doherty (1939 – 2011)
When: 20 June – 27 June 2014
Where: The Gaslamp Gallery, 46 Esmonde Street, Gorey, County Wexford.
Irish Art, Oslo presented a selected number of works by the late Eamonn O’Doherty at the Gaslamp Gallery, Gorey, Co. Wexford on the 20th June. Selected featured work from over 50 years of the artist’s involvement with the Irish art scene and was launched by the well known Dublin cartoonist and poet, Tom Mathews.
Wexford became O’Doherty’s adopted county after retirement from DIT, Bolton Street, where he was for many years a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Architecture. His much loved public work Fauscailt, which is perhaps better known as Pikemen, is situated in Barnstown, Co. Wexford.
Selected featured mainly painting and print unconnected to his public art practice and showcased the artist’s diversity in style and use of medium. Also included was some previously un-shown work, direct from the artist’s studio.
O’Doherty is perhaps best known for his public sculptures, of which over thirty can be found in Ireland, England, USA and Norway. Among his landmark works are the “Crann an Oir” (Tree of Gold) at the Central Bank Plaza in Dublin and the Great Hunger Memorial in Westchester, New York. One of his best known works is the populist but controversial “Anna Livia” monument, which Dubliners quickly rechristened “the floozie in the jacuzzi”. Originally positioned on O’Connell Street it was re-located in 2011 to the Croppy Acre near Heuston Station in Dublin.
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| September 2013 |
"A Man for all Mediums" – Eamonn O’Doherty (1939 – 2011)
A Postscript
To view the exhibition catalogue click here >>
A Man for all Mediums was exceedingly well received by both the people of Derry and visitors to the City of Culture. Belfast poet, Professor Ciaran Carson of Queen’s University, launched the show to a full house with over 300 attending. Both he and his wife Deirdre played tunes in honour of Eamonn and his old school friend Seamus Heaney who passed away the night before the launch.
Eamonn O’Doherty left Derry in the late 50s to study architecture in Dublin. The exhibition could in some respects be seen as something of a homecoming for the artist. His much loved public piece ‘Emigrants’ is well known by the people of Derry. Originally located at Waterloo Place, it has since been relocated to the Quayside. However, not a lot of people would have been familiar with his vast list of accomplishments. A Man for all Mediums succeeded in reintroducing Derry city to one of its most important visual artists. Highlighting his diversity in style and use of medium, the exhibition featured over 80 sculptures, prints, paintings and drawings.
In addition, three specially commissioned display panels, focussing on his extensive career in public sculpture, represented over 30 of these works with notes and photographs. Another display panel focussed on the artist’s involvement with the acclaimed ‘Northern Fiddler’ ethnographic project. The display featured many of O’Doherty’s photographs which were included in the resulting book. Some of the original lithographs and paintings from the book were included in the exhibition. The relatively short run at the temporary London Street Gallery attracted more than 3000 visitors and a lot of positive media attention.
Several of the works sold ended up in private collections in Derry and further afield. In terms of the long lasting legacy of the exhibition, two important pieces have ended up in public collections to be enjoyed by the citizens of Derry and visitors alike.
The seminal conflict statement ‘Armoured Pram for Derry’ was specially restored for A Man for all Mediums, and it is more than fitting that it should end up in the city that inspired it. It was purchased by the Nerve Centre, with funding from DCAL (the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure). They have ambitious plans to exhibit it both locally and internationally, and in addition they intend to use it as a catalyst to inspire creativity in young people and promote education and learning around the legacy of the Troubles.
The award-winning Tower Museum purchased a proposal drawing for ‘Emigrants’, featuring an early vision for the sculpture. It was discovered by curator John Fitzgerald, folded up in a manila envelope in the artist’s studio. As with the ‘Armoured Pram for Derry’, it was in danger of being lost to the world, but has now become part of Tower Museum’s prestigious public collection to be enjoyed by one and all.
To view the exhibition catalogue click here >>
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Actress Saoirse Ronan with the Armoured Pram shortly
before she presents the Turner Prize.
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Derry artist and two time Turner Prize nominee,
Wille Doherty dropped by to see the exhibition. |
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| Mickey Bradley of the "legenderry" punk band,The Undertones, poses with the Armoured Pram. |
Preliminary Proposal, Sculpture at Waterloo Place, Derry.
Mixed media on paper. |
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| August/September 2013 |
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Click on the image above to open the original PDF file |
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"A MAN for all MEDIUMS “ – Eamonn O'Doherty (1939 - 2011)
When: 29 August – 22 September
Where: The London Street Gallery, Derry/Londonderry, Northern Ireland
Irish Art continued its international exhibition program for 2013 with an exhibition of work by the late Eamonn O’Doherty. A Man for all Mediums was part of 2013’s Derry/Londonderry City of Culture celebrations which was the largest cultural event ever held on the island.
The year’s City of Culture saw a homecoming of sorts with a major exhibition of work by the late, Derry born artist Eamonn O'Doherty. Having originally left Derry in 1958 to study architecture in Dublin, O'Doherty always kept his bonds with the city where he grew up. His public work, Emigrants (1990), which was originally situated in Waterloo Place, currently resides on Derry Quay – the site of departure for thousands of emigrants from the North West region. In 1993 Eamonn O'Doherty and Seamus Dunbar were commissioned for the Governor Walker reconstruction.
O’Doherty is best known for his public sculptures, with around thirty large-scale works in Ireland, the U.K., the U.S.A. and Europe. His work is among the best-known of any Irish artist, but as far as name and recognition is concerned, he may also be the least famous. Among his landmark works are the “Crann an Oir” (Tree of Gold) at the Central Bank Plaza in Dublin and the Great Hunger Memorial in Westchester, New York. One of his best known works is the populist but controversial “Anna Livia” monument, which Dubliners quickly rechristened “the floozie in the jacuzzi”. Originally positioned on O’Connell Street it was re-located in 2011 to the Croppy Acre near Heuston Station in Dublin.
In a parallel career, O'Doherty graduated with a degree in Architecture from UCD and was awarded a Visiting Scholarship to Harvard University. He taught at the University of Jordan, was exchange professor at the University of Nebraska and l'École Spéciale d'Architecture in Paris and external examiner at the Ecole Supérieure d'Art Graphique, Paris and the Dun Laoghaire School of Art. He was a Senior Lecturer in Architecture in DIT for many years and retired from this position in 2002 to concentrate on artwork.
A Man for all Mediums featured work selected from over half a century of the artist’s involvement with the Irish arts' scene with particular emphasis on his diversity in style and use of medium and included sculpture, painting, print and photography.
For many the highlight of the show may well have been the recently restored Armoured Pram for Derry (1991), a slightly larger than life perambulator with the appearance of a First World War tank fashioned from 6mm mild steel.
Curated by John Fitzgerald of Irish Art, Norway, A Man for all Mediums was held at the newly opened London Street Gallery. The exhibition ran from the 29th of August until the 22nd of September and was launched by Professor Ciaran Carson on Saturday the 31st of August.
The London Street Gallery
5 London Street
Derry – Londonderry
BT 48 6RQ
Northern Ireland
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| June 2013 |
THE THIN LINE – Jennifer Cunningham
www.jennifercunningham.ie
When: 1 June – 20 June
Where: Galleria Dix, Helsinki, Finland
Click here to download the promotional poster >>
With its first venture outside of Norway, Irish Art was delighted to work with Galleria Dix (www.galleriadix.fi) in presenting Galway born artist Jennifer Cunningham to the Helsinki arts scene.
Following Rollespill/Role Play, her successful Norwegian exhibition at Galleri Sonne last year, Cunningham complemented a busy year at home in Ireland with The Thin Line, her second international solo exhibition.
As the exhibition consists mainly of etchings, the title could be taken as a reference to the artist’s process of using thin lines to create images on a copper plate which are then inked and printed to create a finished etching. It could also allude to the thin line between the departure of childhood into adolescence and on to young adulthood, a complex area of subject matter that seems to engross the artist.
In 2007 Aidan Dunne of the Irish times had this to say about the artist:
“it was immediately apparent that she is a gifted, incisive draughtsperson. Her line is exploratory and infused with nervous energy. You could say that these are old fashioned virtues. Much of contemporary art practice has turned its back on felicitous drawing as though embarrassed by the overt display of technical skill. Bad drawing on one hand is okay and non-threatening. One wondered when Cunningham first showed work, whether she would be diverted into other areas of expression, would be prompted to distance herself from her own talent. So far she hasn’t.”
The exhibition was launched on June 1st at 15.00 by His Excellency, Ambassador Dermot Brangan and was a great success. Wine and refreshments were served and the event was well attended.
This exhibition was supported by Culture Ireland as part of Ireland’s EU Presidency Culture Programme 2013. Support for this exhibition was also received from the Embassy of Ireland - Finland.
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| May 2013 |
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FINISSAGE
Meditations– an exhibition of painting by Mick O’Dea RHA.
Irish Art held a Finissage on Saturday 18.05.13 from 12.00 to 16.00 for the last Saturday of the exhibition. Two new oils, which were painted in Drøbak by the artist on his recent visit, were exhibited.
Curator John Fitzgerald was present to talk about the work.
Refreshments and wine were served. The event was a great success!
Address:
Galleri Henriette Sonne, Storgata 21, Drøbak. (www.gallerisonne.no)
Getting there:
The picturesque town of Drøbak is situated on the eastern shores of the Oslo Fjord. It is easily reached by car in about 30 minutes. Take E6 direction Göteborg and turn off for Drøbak at the end of the tunnel after Tusenfryd.
From Oslo S area by bus:
Bus 451 leaves from Fred Olsens gate every half hour at 17 past the hour (11.17, 11.47, 12.17, 12.47 etc). For more info see ruter.no
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| April/May 2013 |
MEDITATIONS - Mick O'Dea RHA
mickodea.carbonmade.com
When: 25 April – 22 May
Where: Galleri Sonne, Drøbak, Norway
Meditations by Mick O' Dea - Download PDF >>
Irish Art was pleased to host this solo exhibition by one of Ireland’s most prominent painters. This exhibition was organised in cooperation with Galleri Sonne (www.gallerisonne.no).
O'Dea's solo show titled Meditations featured works comprised of what he calls "responses on meditations in the face of the motif" and will include interiors/still life, portraits, nudes and landscapes. The exhibition was made with his trademark spontaneity and vitality. His mastery of technique and materials allowed the viewer a fresh insight into subjects that have fascinated painters for centuries.
Mick O’Dea is best known as a painter of portraits, the human figure and the landscape, but surprised many in recent years with his very successful historical series Black and Tan and Trouble which deals with the Irish war of independence and the Irish civil war respectively.
With work in the National Portrait Collection of Ireland, O’Dea is a much sought after portrait painter and has received numerous commissions from as far away as Hong Kong and the USA. He is an elected member of Aosdána (aosdana.artscouncil.ie), an artist’s association which honours Ireland’s top 250 artists in several different disciplines. He is also a member of the Royal Hibernian Academy (www.rhagallery.ie) where he was instrumental in re-establishing the RHA School which had been closed since the 1940’s. Here he served as the School Principal between 2007 and 2011.
The exhibition was opened on Saturday 27th of April at 13.00 by Her Excellency, Ambassador Angela O'Farrell. The exhibiton was a great success and attended by many.
This exhibition was supported by Culture Ireland as part of Ireland’s EU Presidency Culture Programme 2013. Support for this exhibition was also received from Galleri Sonne and the Embassy of Ireland/Norway.
Mick O’Dea held master classes in portrait painting at Galleri Sonne: 3 May – 5 May. The classes were open to the general public, but were recommended for students with intermediate to advanced experience.
See here for more details
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| March 2013 |
GRAND MARSHAL 2013
This year John Fitzgerald of Irish Art was honoured by the Norwegian Irish Society (www.irishsociety.no), whose Saint Patrick Day’s parade committee appointed him this year’s Grand Marshal in recognition of his work with Irish artists and culture. |
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| December 2012 |
CHRISTMAS EXHIBITION - GALLERI SONNE DRØBAK
Irish Art is delighted to announce that 3 Irish artists will be included in this years Christmas exhibition at Galleri Sonne In Drøbak.
Work from Ger Sweeney, Jay Murphy and Jennifer Cunningham will be exhibited alongside work from Danish artists Hannah Skarsholm and Henriette Sonne as well as work from the Norwegian artist Nikolai Lockertsen.
As a special treat illustrations from the children's book "Three Wise Animals" will also be exhibited. The book is a collaboration between the American artist Angela Amoroso and the Norwegian Marius Renberg.
The exhibition will be launched on Saturday the 01.12.12 between 12.00 and 15.00 and runs until 22.12.12. Hot mulled wine and Christmas goodies will be served and all are welcome!
The best Christmas of wishes to all of you,
Galleri Henriette Sonne and Irish Art |
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| November 2012 |
FINISSAGE
Last chance to see Rollespill / Role Play – An Exhibition of painting, etching and drawing by Jennifer Cunningham.
Irish Art are holding a Finissage on Saturday 10.11.12 from 12.00 to 15.00 for the last Saturday of the exhibition. Curator John Fitzgerald will be present to talk about the work. Refreshments and seasonal goodies will be served.
Address:
Galleri Henriette Sonne, Storgata 21, Drøbak. (www.gallerisonne.no)
Car Pool:
Irish Art is organising a car pool from Oslo to Drøbak. If you have extra place in your car or need a lift please contact John at 930 68 032 or john@irishart.no
Getting there:
The picturesque town of Drøbak is situated on the eastern shores of the Oslo Fjord. It is easily reached by car in about 30 minutes. Take E6 direction Göteborg and turn off for Drøbak at the end of the tunnel after Tusenfryd.
From Oslo S area by bus:
Bus 451 leaves from Fred Olsens gate every half hour at 5 past the hour (11.05, 11.35, 12.05 etc). For more info see ruter.no
Download Exhibition Catalogue >>
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| October 2012 |
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Rollespill / Role Play: An Exhibition of painting, etching and drawing by Jennifer Cunningham. (www.jennifercunningham.ie)
Irish Art would be delighted if you could join us on Friday the 26th October for the launch of Jennifer Cunningham's new exhibition, Rollespille/Role Play, at Galleri Sonne in Drøbak. Her Excellency, Ambassador Angela O’Farrell will give the opening speech and proceedings begin at 17.30. Wine, light refreshments and Irish cheese will be served.
Award winning artist Jennifer Cunningham hails from Galway City and is truly an artist to watch out for. Her work deals with the complex themes of childhood and the leaving of it, and the alienation encountered by many during this process. Her sell out exhibition at Ireland's largest arts festival in Galway last July was a huge success, and her first Norwegian outing is not to be missed.
Address:
Galleri Henriette Sonne, Storgata 21, Drøbak. (www.gallerisonne.no)
Getting there:
The picturesque town of Drøbak is situated on the eastern shores of the Oslo Fjord. It is easily reached by car which takes about 30 minutes driving time.
There is also a good bus link:
From Oslo S area:
Friday 26.10.12 - Bus 542 dep. 16.20 arr. 17.03 - Bus 541 dep. 16.35 arr. 17.28 - Bus 542 dep. 16.50 arr. 17.33
Bus 541 returns to Oslo at 20.29, 20.59 and 21.29 and there is also a good night service. For more info see ruter.no
If anybody would like to join the artist, the promoter and the gallery owner for dinner at 21.00 in a local restaurant please mail john@irishart.no and we will reserve a place at our table.
We would love if you could join us!
Best regards,
John Fitzgerald - Irish Art
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Artist statement
“ Children are much closer to the unconscious than are adults; fantasy and reality are less clearly separated for them.”
The sociology of Childhood, Essential readings edited by Chris Jenks
Childhood and leaving it, is about the move from the imaginary to social spaces and learning how to perform in the latter.
Jennifer uses the media of painting, print and film to explore the inner psychological struggle of her subjects. Central to her work is an ongoing exploration of identity, liminal space and personal subjectivity.
Significant in these processes is a creation of an anxious narrative which foregrounds issues of longing and belonging to the contemporary world and the loss of innocence and youth.
The attraction of childhood is it is often seen as a time of security, protected by the parents and in particular, with the love of the mother. It is a time without the complex responsibilities of adulthood, things which are often at odds with the creative mindset, so it can therefore be seen that it would have a particular attraction to such an individual seeking peace.
Here lies the basis of Sehnsucht; a resistance to change, a desire to return to an ideal place which doesn't exist, to avoid the harsh realities of the world.
Having no literal translation in English, the word 'sehnsucht' evokes a distant yearning in all of us: the common experiences that we share and the common spaces through which we live. This is explored further in the series of small paintings titled Haus der kleinen Sehnsucht (House of the Little Longing) invoking the familar motif of the house to explore emotional connections between physical environment and human beings.
Jennifer Cunningham
- Curriculum Vitae
Qualifications
1999 - National Diploma in Art and Design (Abinatio result: Distinction in Studies)
2002 - Bachelor in Fine Art, Specialisation Printmaking. (First Class Honours with Distinction)
2005 - Arts and Empowerment Course in workshop facilitation (Art Therapy Department, Crawford College of Art and Design)
2006 - VTOS. Fectac Award in Film, Television and video production.
2008 - Masters in .Fine Art. N.C.A.D
Awards and Residencies:
Thomas Dammann Junior Memorial Trust Award 2008
Arts Council Travel and Training Award 2008
Impression8/2002 Norman Ackroyd Etching Award
Taylor Art Award 2002
Henry Higgins Traveling Scholarship 2002
Murray O Laoire Degree Award for Printmaking. 2002
Tyronne Guthrie Centre, Annamacarrick.
RHA School Studio residency July 2011
Inishlacken project, 2010, 2012
S.I.M Iceland 2008,
Cyprus Summer Studio 2004
Selected group shows include, EVA, RHA summer shows 2003- 2012, Tulca, Iontas small works, Shanghai Expo, 2010, Footprint print exhibition, America and SIM, Iceland,
Selected solo and two man shows
2012 October - “Roleplay,” solo show, Gallery Sonne, Norway
2012 July - “Just Add Water”, solo show, Galway Arts Festival
2011 October - “Atlas of memory”, solo show, Mad Art gallery lower gardiner street, Dublin
2011 June - “I want to get off now”, two person at Monster Truck
2010 August - “Abode”, two person at Airfield house, Dublin
2009 May - “Metamorphosis”, solo show, Galway city museum
2008 August - “Uncertain Ground” , Two person show, Tuam Arts festival
2007 July - “Reflections”, Solo show Falcarragh, Donegal
2007 March - Two person show at the Mermaid Arts centre, Bray, Co Wicklow.
2006 November - “An edition of Two”, Kennys Art Gallery Galway
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| November 2011 |
An evening of Irish Culture to celebrate the Celtic New Year
Friday 25th November 21.00, Teaterkjelleren, Centralteatret, Akersgata 38, Oslo.
On behalf of the Irish Embassy, Irish Art organised an evening of Irish culture to celebrate Samhain, the Celtic new year, on Friday the 25th of November.
The highlight of the evening was the performance of An Rón Dall, The Blind Seal, a folk tale in music, word and art performed by the Connemara-based group Fíbín (www.fibin.com). The storytelling of this performance was in Irish and Norwegian. A written text was also supplied in English.
Also featured was singer songwriter Ruth Dillon (www.ruthdillon.com), sean-nós singer Rhona Carroll and Sound-Irish Dance Factory (www.irishdance.no).
The evening was a great success and enjoyed by all.
Download the following PDF files for more information.
The Blind Seal >>
An Ron Dall >>
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| January 2011 |
1 to 69
Wednesday 12 January,17.00, at the Tromsø University Library Gallery
John Fitzgerald of Irish Art gave a public lecture on the exhibition Europe's Edge. He spoke on each of the 69 works exhibited and the 13 artists represented. Europe's Edge was the largest ever exhibition of Irish contemporary art in Norway and included some of the biggest names from the Irish art scene. The exhibition was held in conjunction with the Nordic Irish Studies Network's 7th biennial international conference, The Island and the Arts.
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| December 2010 |
EUROPE'S EDGE Ireland - The Artist and the Island.
Tromsø was the unlikely venue for Irish Art's current exhibition Europe's Edge. In what was probably the largest ever showing of Irish contemporary visual art in Norway, the exhibition explored themes as diverse as the styles of the contributing artists. The exhibition was held at the Tromsø University Library Gallery and ran from December 2nd 2010 until January 13th 2011.
The exhibition was a great success!
- More information on the exhibition and the artists >>
- View gallery >>
Europe's Edge was supported by Culture Ireland and the Embassy of Ireland, Norway. |
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| June 2010 |
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'The loon frae the mirky heights'
Irish Art.no assisted in the curation of the show 'The loon frae the mirky heights':
by Scottish artist Rory Mitchell, who again allowed his imagination to explore new tangents. The result contained a wide variation of themes, styles and emotions, realised in drawings and Gouache paintings.
The exhibition ran from 24-30 June at the Albin Art Galleri, Briskebyveien 42, Oslo. Vernissage was on 24 June at 18.00.
The exhibition was a great success!
Left: "Word like birds" - Gouache, pencil on paper (Please click on the image to enlarge) |
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| June 2010 |
"RE-JOYCE"
"Re-Joyce" - an exhibition of works by five renowned Irish artists relating to James Joyce and his famous novel Ulysses. The exhibition coincided with the Bloomsday Celebrations Oslo 2010 in June, organised by the Norwegian Irish Society. Works by Eamonn O`Doherty, Brian Bourke (HRHA, Aosdána), Charles Cullen (Aosdána), Michael O'Sullivan and Michael Cullen (RHA, Aosdána) were exhibited. This event was supported by Culture Ireland
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The exhibition ran from 12-22 June at the Albin Art Galleri, Briskebyveien 42, Oslo. Vernissage was on Thursday 17 June at 18.00 with an opening speech by His Excellency Gerald F. Ansbro, Ambassador of Ireland.
The exhibition was a great success!
Click here for more information on the event and the artists >>
RE-JOYCE - June 2010 - View Gallery >>
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| September 2009 |
RORY INKASSO
In September 2009 Rory Mitchell opened an exhibition 'Rory inkasso' at his gallery in Oslo, showcasing new art-work from that year. It was a large show including over 50 drawing and paintings. John Fitzgerald of Irish Fine Arts collaborated in the curation and was an integral part of not only the promotion, but also of the the co-ordination of the vernissage. His contributions were instrumental in resulting in a highly professional exhibition which ran smoothly throughout its duration.
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