SMALL WORLD?A miniature drawing by Chris Leach, one of the five artists in the FIND exhibition in Castlebar.
Seek and ye shall FIND
The town of Castlebar has been turned into a living gallery, thanks to a series of temporary artworks, installations and events. Five Mayo artists’ works have been installed within walking distance of each other and can be found via a map or by attending guided artist tours. The Linenhall Arts Centre is acting both as central headquarters and as a studio for participating artists and audience alike.
The collaborative exhibition, called ‘FIND’, was launched last Saturday, March 29, and the day included a performance and re-enactment of a tug of war that was once an annual event for workers at the Old Hat Factory. The artist – Amanda Rice – searched out descendants of the hat factory to take part, along with students from St Joseph’s school in the town.
The other artists selected for the commissions are Nuala Clarke (with Crystal Gandrud), Alice Dixon (with Anthony Champa), Joanna Hopkins, Chris Leach and Ian Wieczorek. The artworks include a series of miniature drawings in business environments, an outdoor film projection, a building that lights up and interacts with passers-by, a side street crammed with flags and text relating to the old linen industry and the old Castlebar Star Cinema rediscovered and represented in a very unexpected way.
An accompanying exhibition at The Linenhall will expose the studio work and processes behind the production of these artworks and give an insight into the participating artists’ wider practice. The gallery space will in effect become a living installation of artists' studios during the month of the exhibition, and audience members throughout April will have the opportunity to observe and meet the artists working in the space.
For full details of the event, the artists and their artworks visit www.findartproject.com. The Website also includes a downloadable brochure, with location map for the artworks.
FIND runs until Saturday, April 26. An afternoon of talks from the artists and mentor Alice Maher will take place on Saturday, April 19, at 2pm at The Linenhall. All are welcome to these events, which are all free of charge.
