The exhibition ‘Gift of a Lifetime’ at the Chester Beatty Library celebrates the 50th anniversary of Sir Alfred Chester Beatty’s bequest to the Irish people with a selection of masterpieces from the collection on view. A prolific and discerning collector, Beatty acquired rare books, manuscripts and decorative arts of the highest quality and rarity from Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Beatty brought these collections to Ireland and placed them in trust to the nation on his death in 1968. From crafted objects for powerful rulers to treasures tracing the history of world religions, the artworks capture the breadth and wonder of this legacy.
Gift of a Lifetime: until 28 April
A recently commissioned body of work by Cléa van der Grijn, titled ‘JUMP’, is exhibited at the Courthouse Arts Centre in Tinahely. In her work, the artist attempts to unravel the complexities around death, memory and time. This new work was commissioned by the Mermaid Arts Centre and consistsof a series of new paintings and a film written and produced by the artist and a group of collaborators: Joseph P Hunt, Michael Cummins and Ciaran Carty.
Cléa van der Grijn: 18 January – 23 February
‘B&A Survey exhibition, 30 years of commissioning fine art prints with Graphic Studio Dublin’ at the Graphic Studio Gallery celebrates Ireland’s longest running art commission, and the relationship between the Studio and Behaviour & Attitudes. B&A is Ireland’s leading independent market research agency; Graphic Studio Dublin began printing their limited edition fine art prints in 1989, producing a new suite of work for them every year since. To date they have commissioned twenty-nine artists to make seventy-five different images. Commissioned artists include Pat Harris, Maser, Louise Leonard, Colin Martin, James McCreary, Mary Lohan, Robert Russell, Hughie O’Donoghue, John Kindness and many more.
B&A Survey exhibition: 13 February – 9 March
Solomon Fine Art hosts an exhibition of new paintings by Margaret Egan entitled ‘The Breath and Sound of Earth’. Egan shows a collection of her distinctive figurative works and atmospheric landscapes based on her interpretation of contemporary urban and rural life. Egan has exhibited in Ireland, England, Wales, France, Portugal, New York and Singapore and her work is held in both public and private collections including Deloitte Ireland, the National Concert Hall and The Abbey Theatre Dublin.
Margaret Egan: 8 February – 2 March
The Butler Gallery presents an exhibition of work by New York-based photographer, Eva O’Leary which includes previously unseen work from a series entitled ‘Spitting Image’, portraits of American teenagers photographed looking in mirrors. These images show both the girls’ discomfort with being put in front of the lens, and the ways in which they, and others, present themselves for the camera. The exhibition will also include a three-channel single projection of ‘Spitting Image’. A graduate of the MFA programme at Yale University, O’Leary is a recent winner of the Outset Unseen Exhibition Fund, the INF Unseen Talent Award, and the 2018 Hyeres Festival photographie grand pix award.
Eva O’Leary: 12 Jan – 3 Mar
