Diverse mix of artists announced for Limerick's vibrant contemporary art trail

SINCE 1977, Limerick has played host to a range of Irish and international artists at Ireland’s Biennial of Contemporary Art showcase. This year is no different as the line-up of participating creative minds have been announced for the exhibit's 40th year.

Curated by Sebastian Cichocki, Chief Curator at the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw, the showcase for the 40th EVA International, Ireland’s Biennial of Contemporary Art, will trail around the Limerick's city centre from August 31 to October 29, featuring over 45 presentations by Irish and international artists and collectives.

Taking place every two years, the theme of the programme this year is based on the idea and practice of gleaning, a term that traditionally refers to the act of collecting leftover crops following a harvest.

The Gleaners Society extends this reference in a multiple of ways, alternately serving as an artistic subject, a political metaphor, and a curatorial methodology to explore and propose art’s relationship to society.

Artists include, Kateryna Aliinyk, Orla Barry, Robert Barry, Olga Micińska with Mathild Clerc-Verhoeven, Thomond Primary School Gardening Club in collaboration with Deirdre O’Mahony and Hometree, Léann Herlihy, Seoidin O'Sullivan, Iza Tarasewicz, and many more.

A set of uniquely diverse venues in Limerick city are due to play host to the art, including civic arts institutions, Thomond Primary School, a cathedral, and a vegetarian cafe, among many others. 

From offices, shops, bars, museums, ex-industrial units, and public spaces, EVA’s use of the city has variously reflected the changing ambition of the visual arts to integrate itself into the broader social environment, while also serving as a map of changes in the urban fabric itself.

To coincide with the launch of the 40th EVA International, EVA will also launch Never Look Back, an ongoing programme of resources, commissions, and events that are dedicated to the traces of EVA’s history across Limerick city since EVA was established in 1977.

Funded by the Arts Council of Ireland, Instytut Adama Mickiewicza, Minister of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland, and Limerick City and County Council, the 40th EVA International leads in the commissioning and curating of contemporary art by Irish and international artists, which takes place every two years across venues in Limerick city and beyond.

More information on the event can be found on the EVA website.