A visual journey with Janet
‘MY MINDS I’ at Wexford Arts Centre is the first large scale exhibition in five years by artist Janet Mullarney.
Theshowismadeupofintriguingsmallscalesculptures, paintings, shadows and silhouettes with the title referring to the mind’s eye and the human ability for visualisation, to ‘see’ things with the mind and the power of the psychic imagination.
Mullarney is regarded as one of Ireland’s most important contemporary artists and the latest work is an Arts Council touring exhibition which was curated by Aoife Ruane, Director of Highlanes Gallery in Drogheda with lighting design by Marcus Costello.
In the collection, small fragile sculptures are placed in heightened lighting to create a mysterious theatrical world of humanised animals and strangely composed figures. Everything is beautifully elegant and precisely observed but she doesn’t try to disguise the nuts and bolts of how it’s all put together.
The exhibition is on display in two of the Arts Centre’s galleries with some of the strategically lit pieces upstairs, made from paper and wire, casting enlarged shadows onto blank canvasses.
Arranged on lightboxes her characters form dramatic tableaux that have a mesmerising impact. She is not trying to tell stories. ‘In that sense, I don’t quite know what’s going on,’ she has said. ‘And I don’t want to know.’
A colour catalogue with text by the art historian William Gallagher and the writer and documentary maker Manchá Magan accompanies the exhibition.
Discovery Pens will be available to visitors, allowing blind or visually impaired people to explore the art works through audio descriptions and artist and curator statements installed by Arts Disability Ireland. The Discovery Pen is a handheld device about the size of an ice-cream cone with a speaker on the top. It narrows to a blunt point which is pressed against data badges on the wall.
Janet Mullarney was born in Dublin and lives between Ireland and Italy. She has exhibited widely and has won numerous artistic awards. She has large works in public spaces in Holland, Belfast and Dublin and is a member of Aosdána.
The exhibition will continue at Wexford Arts Centre until November 26.