The sixth Limerick Exhibition of Visual Art prompts debate regarding the nature of contemporary art.
There were 500 submissions to EVA, out of which 70 works were selected. The exhibition was adjudicated by Liesbeth Brandt Cortius, Director of the Municipal Museum in Arnhem, Holland. Exhibition coordinator Charles Harper provides an outline of what is on offer at the show. While the exhibition includes painting, graphics and sculpture, he is reluctant to pigeonhole these three areas. Many of the pieces on display blur the lines of conventional descriptions of media and raise questions about what contemporary art is.
Paintings by Anne Carlisle are described by many as drawings, while Willie Heron's graphic works are more like paintings.
It's not a question of technique. It's a question of concept.
Works by artists Pauline Fitzgerald and Samuel Walsh feature in the grid section of the exhibition. Both artists have very different approaches and purposes. 'Heartlines' by Pauline Fitzgerald is inspired by palmistry, while Sam Walsh's work is influenced by ancient architecture.
Joe Wilson's collage depicts a Kerry gate using different materials to examine various principles such as repairs, deterioration, and construction.
The materials are a direct result of trying to explain something specific.
Simon Moller's sculpture won first prize in the competition. Apart from the architectural references, his work uses non sculpture materials such as latex along with traditional materials like plaster and wood.
This episode of 'Ireland's Eye' was broadcast on 15 November 1982.
EVA 1975 ran for the month of October.
