Sound man Danny, from Mallow, is Cork Person of the Month for October
PIONEERING ARTIST HONOURED FOR HIS SOUND AND PERFORMANCE WORK
THE Mallow-born multi-award winning artist Danny McCarthy has been honoured with the prestigious Cork Person of the Month award for October in recognition of his pioneering work in sound and performance.
Mr McCarthy has been a key figures in Cork’s vibrant arts scene for decades and was one of the very first people in Cork to recognise sound as an art form and incorporate it into his work.
A graduate of the National College of Art and Design, McCarthy was a founding director of the National Sculpture Factory in Cork and the Triskel Arts Centre, and is the current director of the Sirius Arts Centre in Cobh.
He lectures in sound art in the School of Music & Drama at UCC, is a visiting lecturer and workshop facilitator at numerous other institutions and is recognised worldwide for his innovative sound art. Using acoustics, electronics, noise music, audio media, environmental sound and film in his work, he has exhibited and performing widely both in Ireland and abroad.
He has also curated numerous exhibitions and projects including ‘Sound Out (with David Toop), ‘Bend It Like Beckett’, ‘Sonic Vigil’ and ‘Just Listen’, and his work has appeared on numerous CD’s and DVD’s, has been broadcast on radio and TV and his work been the subject of various different programmes and media articles.
He is the recipient of many awards and bursaries from the Irish Arts Council, Culture Ireland and the Department of Foreign Affairs, which have allowed him to represent Ireland abroad bringing his ground-breaking work to global audiences.
In 2006 he and Mick O’Shea founded the Quiet Club, a floating membership sound (art and electronics) performance group that has performed and presented works to widespread critical acclaim across Europe, North America, China and Japan.
Regarded as one of the leading contemporary art/sound improv groups, The Quiet Club is renowned for pushing the boundaries of sound making and listening by using a wide, and often usual range of devices, in their work. These can include stones, home-made instruments, electronics, amplified textures field recordings and even whatever items McCarthy can pick up from car boot sales.
Cork Person of the Year awards founder, fellow Mallow native Manus O’Callaghan, said that it was impossible to overstate Danny McCarthy’s contribution to the world of sound art.
“He has compiled a prolific body of work over the years and continues to innovate and inspire through his art and by curating exhibitions and projects around the world,” said Mr O’Callaghan.
“As all art should, Danny’s works delight and challenge audiences, and he has shown incredible bravery, persistence and creativity in establishing sound as an art form to the wider public both at home and abroad. Most of all, he has proven to be a wonderful ambassador for Mallow, Cork and Ireland.”
Danny McCarthy’s name will now go forward for possible selection as the 2018 Cork Person of the Year, the winner of which will be announced at a gala lunch reception next January.