Artists have been losing studio space in Dublin and councillors must tackle this to signal their intent to develop a sustainable creative city, says Gerard Byrne.
Around this time every year Dublin’s art schools open their doors. Their degree exhibitions announce the arrival of graduating artists into broader society. The regularity of this occasion shouldn’t dull us to its significance. Each year I watch awkward suburban dads, rural mums, and inner-city grannies wander, by times proud or deeply challenged, among the cryptic and provocative art shows of their children and their class-mates.
The sincerity, the communality, the open-mindedness on display on all sides is a rare moment. But just as this moment of communion announces the graduates’ arrival, it also signals their imminent dispersal. Invariably many will soon migrate, which is no tragedy. But for all our sakes Dublin also needs to be a viable option for some to stay, and in the long run, to return to... Keep reading on the Irish Times
Around this time every year Dublin’s art schools open their doors. Their degree exhibitions announce the arrival of graduating artists into broader society. The regularity of this occasion shouldn’t dull us to its significance. Each year I watch awkward suburban dads, rural mums, and inner-city grannies wander, by times proud or deeply challenged, among the cryptic and provocative art shows of their children and their class-mates.
The sincerity, the communality, the open-mindedness on display on all sides is a rare moment. But just as this moment of communion announces the graduates’ arrival, it also signals their imminent dispersal. Invariably many will soon migrate, which is no tragedy. But for all our sakes Dublin also needs to be a viable option for some to stay, and in the long run, to return to... Keep reading on the Irish Times