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28/5/2009

The Quick and the Dead

Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane, Dublin

We find ourselves once again in a time of social and political flux. The fallout of the current economic crisis has brought back to the Irish harsh memories of emigration and long dole queues. The Quick and the Dead is a timely opportunity to reconnect with the severed reference points of a rich and subversive Irish history.

The exhibition brings together four of Ireland's most respected contemporary artists who emerged in the 1980's. In this period of uncertainty Patrick Graham, Patrick Hall, Timothy Hawkesworth and Brian Maguire consolidated their positions as exponents in Ireland's postcolonial debate. Their mutual distrust of a highly academic approach to the art making process has enabled these artists to continually produce aggressive, visceral and hard-hitting works that convey philosophical and ethical ideas that are increasingly becoming more relevant. This exhibition brings together for the first time a selection of work from the last two decades of the 20th century along with work from the present.

Coming of age in a time of Ireland's modernisation, Patrick Graham mined the unresolved relationship between heritage and the construction of a national cultural identity. His philosophical paintings are filled with the loss of innocence but also speak of the unknown mystery of death and transcendence.

Like the German expressionists of the 1930's, Brian Maguire's deeply felt social and political commitments have consistently guided his work in pointing to individuals whose needs and desires are overlooked by the preoccupations of successive governments. Giving voice to injustices, both at home and abroad, he has consistently brought his caustic gaze and conscious fury to bear on the indignities inflicted on the oppressed individual.

Patrick Hall has travelled far from the early bonds of domestic affection and restriction and now paints canvases and watercolours of flowers, mountains, sea and clouds that are peopled with his own history and aspirations. Through works of individual and collective memory, Hall creates time in space, uncovering forces that push in paradoxical directions.

After a formative period spent in the Dublin art scene of the seventies Timothy Hawkesworth moved to the USA. There is an urgent pace to his work almost as if a deadline is imminent. His paintings manifest the effort to make concrete his lived experience and memories of times past.

A richly illustrated catalogue accompanies the exhibition. This includes contributions by Colin Graham, Marlena Doktorczyk-Donohue, Lara Marlowe, Hans Ulrich Obrist and Patrick T. Murphy.

Next exhibition:

The Golden Bough: Brian Duggan: "Step inside now step inside"
13 June - 13 September 2009

Applying The Golden Bough theme as an underlining support structure for showcasing new innovative art practices, Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane has invited distinguished contemporary artists to exhibit in Charlemont House. The Golden Bough suite continues with new work by Brian Duggan. In this major body of work, Duggan responds to the particular architecture of the Gallery and its unique context. The installation inserts a bisected carnival motordrome into the gallery and its presence both completes the internal loop and interrupts the classical space. For further information on the artist see: http://www.brianduggan.net

Image: Brian Maguire, Nairobi Slum Clearance 28/1/07, 2007, Acrylic on canvas. Courtesy Kerlin Gallery, Dublin.Image 4 of 5

Press contact
Dairne O'Sullivan, Press and Marketing Manager t: +353 1 222 5568 e: dairne.osullivan@dublincity.ie

Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane
Charlemont House Parnell Square North Dublin 1 Ireland
Opening Hours
Tuesday to Thursday 10.00am– 6.00pm
Friday & Saturday 10.00am–5.00pm
Sunday 11.00am–5.00pm
Closed Mondays
Admission to the Gallery is free

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