Taking as its starting point the theme of artistic, social and political flux engendered by the 1916 Rising, the Artist as Witness in Society is a substantial exhibition drawn from the Hugh Lane’s prodigious collection.This exhibition sees the galleries rehung with a new selection of work offering diverse perspectives on how artists have depicted the changing world around them; how they have engaged with conflict and the liminal in society; and how artists have explored new ways of seeing.The exhibition includes work ranging from the Impressionists, to the Cubist-inspired paintings of Evie Hone and Mainie Jellett dismissed in their own time as ‘artistic malaria’; and to the searing studies of the conflict in Northern Ireland by Rita Donagh and Willie Doherty among others. New acquisitions including A 2007 portrait of the 11 Irish Dunnes Stores strikers by Garrett Phelan and Wall of Death Hell Rider by Brian Duggan are also exhibited.
The Artist as Witness in Society: Collection is curated by Jessica O’Donnell.
Alan Phelan, Still from Our Kind, 2016, © the artist.
John Lavery, The Court of Criminal Appeal. London. 1916. (Roger Casement), 1916. Oil on panel, 80 x 63.5 cm. Collection Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane.
Jesse Jones, No More Fun and Games, 2016, © the artist.
Installation view of The Artist as Witness in Society: Collection. Image by Ros Kavanagh
Installation view of The Artist as Witness in Society: Collection. Image by Ros Kavanagh
Installation view of The Artist as Witness in Society: Collection. Image by Ros Kavanagh
Installation view of The Artist as Witness in Society: Collection. Image by Ros Kavanagh
Installation view of The Artist as Witness in Society: Collection. Image by Ros Kavanagh
Installation view of The Artist as Witness in Society: Collection. Image by Ros Kavanagh
