Image: Mark Francis 'Fluctus'
HERE, THERE & THEM: CONTEMPORARY IRISH ART FROM THE ACNI COLLECTION
11 January - 1 March 2025
The Arts Council of Northern Ireland’s Contemporary Art Collection is the leading public contemporary art collection for Northern Ireland representing artists at the forefront of visual arts practice. This curated selection of work from it captures contemporary artists’ interpretations of place in the present and beyond time and place. Across mediums, abstracted nostalgia and classic contemporary sit alongside eye candy and playfulness in an eclectic, dynamic and vibrant exhibition.
Presented over two main gallery spaces in Flowerfield Arts Centre, ‘Here, There & Them’ is a new exhibition of works borrowed from the Collection of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, bringing together in its selection, a rich range of artistic practice. The displayed works include painting, sculpture, print, photography and craft, and mark 20 years of contemporary practice, by visual artists connected to Northern Ireland.
On show, is an array of disciplines, materials and artistic processes, presenting key works purchased from artists and makers at important points in their career, representing emerging to established.
As a grouping, this exhibition aims to encapsulate the energy of artistic creation, as a burst of colour and form, capturing the uniqueness of the artist’s gaze on the world. Underpinning this selection, there is an interest in abstraction, and we can see how artists adopt this in a variety of ways across different mediums, to invite us to consider alternative ways of looking and thinking about our being.
There is a focus within the theme of the show on locality, featuring artists and makers whose practice is rooted within the Causeway Coast and Glens area. Also, the exhibition in its range of works, speaks to the wider world, embracing the advancements of new technologies, whilst acknowledging the most urgent concerns of current times.
EXHIBITION LAUNCH: Saturday 11 January | 12noon | Free Admission | All welcome
On Saturday 11 January at 12noon, join Suzanne Lyle & Joanna Johnston from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland’s Collections and Acquisitions team who will introduce the collection and give a guided tour of the work.
