PhotoIreland Festival 2011
In 2010, we estimated a total of 65,000 visitors to the festival, and media exposure to over 1.5 million. Supported by the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, we engaged more than 50 organisations to develop 45 exhibitions in 45 venues, offering the work of a total of hundreds of photographers around the city of Dublin. We also had the kind support of many leading cultural organisations and individuals, most noticeably the Arts Council, the Dublin City Council, The Irish Times, RTE, and EUNIC.
Visit the PhotoIreland Festival 2011 web site.
Theme: Collaborative Change.
Collaborative efforts in the world of photography seem to respond to times of change. Magnum Photos, the classic example of a photographic co-operative, was founded in 1947. It is now the most prestigious photographic agency in the world. Ostkreuz, its smaller German cousin, was founded in former East Berlin in 1990, just one year after the fall of Wall. The main purpose of these agencies was, and to a certain extent still is, to protect its members’ copyrights and to promote them in the magazine and publishing market.
Of late we have seen the rise of another collaborative form – Photography Collectives. These collectives concentrate on the collaborative process by organising workshops, group exhibitions, and collaborative projects. They see the collective approach as an alternative economic model, a sustainable principle of art production, where process, experience, authorship, responsibility and success are shared. And they are convinced that this model has serious advantages in the current context of local and global crisis.
Through our theme in 2011, ‘Collaborative Change’, we propose an exploration of a set of practices and modes of production where artists, curators and cultural organisations work in collaboration, or are focused on highlighting the efforts of those who do so. Promoting an idea of cultural entrepreneurship and cooperation, the festival intends to comment on current efforts by individuals and organisations addressing recent shifts, and also to search for unexplored paths towards new modes of collaboration.
We have programmed photographic exhibitions by European photo collectives, and site specific installations by two curatorial teams. A seminar will be held with international guests from diverse disciplines such as Economics, Art, Information Science, Sociology and Politics, to investigate the theme of the festival. There will be a selection of screenings that will run in parallel to the seminar.
Photo Books
In July 2011, PhotoIreland will present Martin Parr’s Best photo books of the Decade, an exhibition of 30 publications from all over the globe, hand-picked by the world-famous photographer and photographic bibliophile. These photo books have not only fantastic images, but also have exceptional production value which, and become classics of their own time. Often quite radical, and sometimes taking a good amount of time to let their merits be appreciated, all of these books are bound to go down as important contributors to the ongoing photographic book culture.
Book Fair
As we have seen a clear appetite for it, we will host a Book and Magazine Fair where national and international publishers will showcase their latest publications.
Open Call 2011
In cooperation with Blurb, this year we will search for the best contemporary photo books within our audience, via our international call for submissions. The best books will be printed and they will be available for all to see at the Book Fair. Submissions are open, and the deadline is June 10, 2011.
And to make sure we all learn from the experience, Blurb will run a bookmaking seminar – to which we will add some practical workshops.
Collecting Photography
The special programme on collecting photography is centred on IMMA’s exhibition Out of the Dark Room: The David Kronn Collection, opening the 20th of July. Sean Kisanne, Head of exhibitions, will give a talk on this extensive collection which includes more than 450 photographs, ranging in content from 19th century Daguerreotypes to contemporary photographers such as Simon Norfolk. The exhibition will be accompanied by a fully-illustrated catalogue published by IMMA that includes texts by Susan Bright, Seán Kissane, David Kronn and Carol Squiers.
Theoretical and practical aspects of collecting photography, including archiving and conservation, legal matters and other considerations, will be addressed at talks by specialists in the field.
OFF Programme
The OFF Programme offers a unique opportunity to all wishing to exhibit during the festival. Without the need of fulfilling the festival theme, photographers, curators, galleries and studios are welcome to submit their projects.
While participating on the OFF programme means that you would cover your exhibition costs, we will be able to support you via our network of partners with printing, finding the right venue, and so on.
All exhibitions in the OFF Programme will be listed in the printed catalogue and on the festival web site. The deadline for proposals and for collection of information is the 6th of May 2011. If you wish to submit your project, email us at info[AT]photoireland.org and give as much information as possible. We will guide you through the process. Also, check the news page to see calls for work and competitions.
We are already in conversations with many participants, and it looks like it is going to be quite fun!
Summer Campus
PhotoIreland’s Summer Campus will consist of talks, presentations, projections, online and offline meetings, tutorials and discussions in the field of self-publishing, collaborative models, and image theory, but also hands-on-workshops and a children’s programme.
____________________
Read more:
