New Irish Works 2023-2024 continues with
Power on the Floor, by Mark Duffy

Launch 6pm Thu 8 February
Running 8-25 February
At The Library Project

PhotoIreland presents with 'Power on the Floor' two new works by Mark Duffy, On Pugin and Empty Gestures. This is the eighth exhibition in the New Irish Works series.
     When Mark Duffy was working as photographer in the UK Parliament, a senior official said to him ‘you’re going to see a lot of power on the floor, you might as well pick some up’. The projects presented in this exhibition have both obsessively collected images of corrupted power in British politics; they emphasise the act of scrutiny and are characteristic of Mark's wider practice: sometimes fast and reactive, sometimes slow and laborious, his work gathers images, artefacts and materials that can help make sense of the nuanced mess that is politics and power.

PhotoIreland 2023: A Year in Review

PhotoIreland closed 2023 having completed successfully a series of projects planned in Ireland and abroad. These projects, made possible with the kind support of the Arts Council of Ireland, were brought to realisation with PhotoIreland’s unique approach and characteristic energy. Together, they constitute PhotoIreland’s 360 degrees support framework, focused on artists, the artform and audiences.
     They range from supporting artists with developmental programmes such as New Irish Works, RELAY and RADAR to publicly celebrating their work in events such as PhotoIreland Festival, HALFTONE print fair, and at TSUNDOKU Art book fair. All these, alongside participatory events enhancing the mediation of the cultural offer. Get to know more about the extent of the work PhotoIreland does with this review.

Book Launch: GOT DAMP by Avril Corroon

Launch 6pm Fri 16 February
Readings 6:30pm by Julian Bernard and Eimear Murphy
At The Library Project

Copies available at The Library Project.

GOT DAMP is a project developed by artist Avril Corroon from research into living conditions as a galvanising issue for communities in exercising their political voice. At the heart of Corroon’s material enquiry was an ongoing exchange over 2 years with 55 households from London and Dublin who joined through canvassing local areas, a public open call and an invitation to members of the Community Action Tenants Union Ireland.
     The publication, GOT DAMP collates documentation of research, process, installation images, interviews, poetry and responses from writers, half of whom were project participants. Contributors include Mat Jenner, curator of artist-led space TACO! introduces Got Damp, its contexts and critical scope. Julian Bernard reflects on the project’s process in relation to collective action, community and damp in their home. Chris Fite-Wassilak examines contradictions of modern living under the scope of rot and microbial terroir. Kirsten Cooke charts damps’ fluid coordinates through buildings and bodies. Daisy Lafarge presents a selection of poems ‘understudies for air’ and Eimear Murphy asks what reciprocity is.

The Library Project re-opens

The Library Project is back after its January break. As Ireland’s Art Bookshop, we have over 800 Photobook titles from Ireland and beyond, including some coveted collector’s items, contemporary artist books, over 200 titles in magazines and zines - local and international, carefully selected and fun titles for young people, as well as a diverse range of books on design, architecture, photo and art texts and theory, and other essentials for creatives. 
     Some of the latest highlights include:
     -Pre Order: Charles Peterson's Nirvana in the tradition of many great documentary photobooks, expands beyond Peterson’s iconic images of the band seen repeatedly over the last thirty years to highlight gems never before published
-What if you could sit down with your favourite artist and ask them anything you liked - Life? Work? Inspiration? Based on new interviews and archival material from a huge roster of artists, Ways of Being: Advice for Artists does exactly that
     -Tremble, Tremble / The Tower is the first book dedicated to two seminal works by Irish artist Jesse Jones: Tremble Tremble which she presented in the Irish Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2017; and The Tower which was commissioned by Rua Red in Dublin as part of The Magdalene Series.
     -What exactly is consent? Why does it matter? How can you respect other people's boundaries, and have them respect yours? Can We Talk About Consent? breaks down the basics of how to give and get consent in every aspect of life for readers aged 14 years and older.
     -FUKT is a magazine for contemporary drawing, with the latest issue focusing on the subject of the Unknown.
     -In this groundbreaking work, The Civil Contract of Photography, Ariella Azoulay thoroughly revises our understanding of the ethical status of photography.

All these and mucm more at The Library Project online and at number 4 Temple Bar Street, Dublin 2.

New Publication: Dust by Atong Atem

Just in! Dust is an experimental photobook by artist Atong Atem, in response to and commemorating the body of work, commissioned by Catherine E. McKinley for PhotoIreland Festival 2023. Dust explores the relationship of Dinka women who act as mediums and custodians to the earth, to the rupturing history of Christianity and colonialism.

On the occasion of this commission, South African riso publisher Dream Press designed and produced an edition of 200 risograph publication. Each publication is hand-bound, comprising unique details such as inserts, beaded stitching, with an embossed texture, silver effect, laser-cut book cover.

The commission and publication is supported by PhotoIreland and Arts Council of Ireland.

Do you know what PhotoIreland does?

PhotoIreland grows the reputation of Irish artists globally through a 360 degree support system and platform for contemporary photography, activated through a diversity of projects. These include events such as PhotoIreland Festival and Halftone print fair amongst others; resources such as the PhotoIreland Collection, a specialised research library of photobooks, and Ireland’s Art Bookshop, The Library Project; via publishing with projects such as OVER Journal and TLP Editions; professional development support through networking and consultancy opportunities; and empowering early and mid-career photographers via our international partnerships, most relevantly through Creative Europe co-funded platforms such as FUTURES and Parallel.

Find out more about PhotoIreland at photoireland.org
If you want to stay informed, you can subscribe to our newsletters!