THE Irish Museum of Modern Art opened an exhibition on peace-building through art in post war Europe on September 14.
Featured in it is Donegal-born artist Frances Hegarty.
Frances, who was born in Teelin, emigrated to Scotland as a Gaelic-speaking teenager in the late 1950s.
She has since recorded critical success with several works, including Turas (Mothertongue), which is one of several works emerging from her works from 1990.
Frances Hegarty showed her work Turas at the launch – a dialogue with her mother exploring the possibility of reclaiming Gaelic.
It was created during a time of political negotiation and hope.
She explores the female figure in landscape, bodily gesture between drawing and writing.
It is the first time audiences will have a chance to view this work at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA).
A new Irish Museum of Modern Art exhibition on peace-building through art in post-war Europe features Donegal-born artist Frances Hegarty.
The landmark exhibition at IMMA called The Technology of Peace features 59 artists from 17 different countries across the continent.
There are over 100 works on display, with video, photography, installation, sculpture and archival material. There are almost 60 international pieces never shown in Ireland before, and pieces from IMMA’s collection that are on public display for the first time.
The exhibition wants to draw parallels between Ireland’s political history, particularly the Troubles in the North and peace process, with other countries in Europe that have had similar history from places of conflict into places of peace.
Culture Minister Patrick O’Donovan: “At a moment marked by ongoing wars and geopolitical instability, it reminds us that peace is never straightforward.
“It is a complex and ongoing process – one that needs to be nurtured and sustained.”
IMMA director Annie Fletcher said: “By looking at all the ways in which peace is created through small, practical acts, as well as the larger, more newsworthy negotiations, it invites us to consider peace not as a fixed achievement, but as a continuous practice that must be nurtured, negotiated and renewed.”
Technologies of Peace features pieces by renowned Irish artists, some of whose works are part of IMMA’s National Collection and will be shown at IMMA as part of this exhibition for the first time.
This is the first public presentation of a major five-year research initiative led by IMMA, between 2025 and 2030.
The initiative examines the artistic practice and cultural experience played in healing societies,creating reconciliation, and building community.