Fanning the flames
ArtTrail, Cork’s contemporary arts festival, allows artists to present their work in a relatively informal manner through a programme of open studios where the public can see the working artists in action. Now in its 15th season, the festival runs from November 18 to December 4.
ArtTrail prides itself on its encouragement of innovation and public participation. The festival is particularly adept at utilising interesting and often unconventional spaces. By presenting the new works and site specific installations in this way, the festival retains a lightness of touch which appeals to a broad audience. Generally the artists themselves are available to give a direct insight into their work and the processes they use.
The festival this year is entitled National Interest, a name which prompts its audience to consider how exactly the two words can be interpreted in modern Ireland.
It is also a variation on the political phrase “in the National Interest,” which is currently used to justify cuts across the whole spectrum of services in Ireland. Increasingly, the arts in Ireland are also justified on a similar basis — on national tourist numbers and on hotel beds sold — rather than on their intrinsic merit.
One of the main organisers of ArtTrail is Kevin Tuohy, who graduated from the Crawford College of Art and Design in 2005. “That year I was involved in a project which utilised an old bakery and I produced a site specific installation which drew heavily on its history,” he says. “For me, Arttrail was perfect for the type of unusual, non-gallery type practice I was engaged in at the time.”
One of the most exciting spaces available this year is the Elysian, which is now an iconic structure within the city of Cork. Finished in 2008 just as the economy tipped into recession, the nation’s tallest building can be seen either as a reminder of Ireland’s self-delusion or a sign of its confidence and ambition. It is also a fantastic space that brings its own particular atmosphere to the event.
“There was always an open studio strand to the festival and Art Embassy at the Elysian is a variation on that theme,” Tuohy says. “This year we opted for a large group exhibition. One effect of the downturn is that there are empty properties available, and an exhibition like this brings a positive use to an empty space.
“I suppose the Elysian is not a neutral space, but at least it was completed according to its original design. It isn’t half finished. Perhaps in Ireland there is too much pressure to assess success or failure very quickly; we win one game in rugby and we are world champions, we lose one and the pendulum swings to the other side. Who knows how this building will be viewed in the future?
“It is a similar longterm process for many artists who work over a lifetime and may only be judged a success at the end of their careers. For a city it is also that long term investment in production, practice and presentation rather than annual festivals that brings it into the category of a cultural city.”
Contrasting sharply with the Elysian is the second major location within the Old Government Buildings on Sullivan’s Quay. It may lack the grace and style of the Elysian, but as a previously functional building, it brings a different history and mood.
Neil Butler is an artist based in London and has used the online service Google Translate to translate the words of the Irish Declaration of Independence into various languages. Not unexpectedly, as the words move from language to language, they lose their coherency. “Neil’s work considers the idea that a generic online translator can not accurately capture the words and ethos of such a document,” says Tuohy. “Similarly, if you assess a country only from an online frame of reference, without physically being there, your impressions may be skewed.
“The work also considers how Ireland is considered abroad by the endings that Google predictive searches throw up to the question: ‘Ireland is ... ?’.”
In a similar vein is the work of Swedish artist and composer Kent Gustafson who examines and compares the words of many different national anthems. Suggesting a lack of imagination on the part of those who commissioned them, he finds that the themes and words are remarkably similar.
The timing of this work is apt, perhaps, given that Ireland’s successful start to their Rugby World Cup campaign raised again the issue of which anthem would be played.
It is also noted that the copyright on the Irish national anthem runs out next year, which means it could be altered or even used for commercial purposes. “The national anthem was written at a particular time in Ireland’s social, financial and military history and the words reflect that,” says Tuohy.
“But essentially those words were written by an individual. Should they be retained unchanged in perpetuity? Does the anthem represent Ireland as it is today with its dynamic social structure and immigrant population?”
Similar questions are asked by the collaborative project, A Flag For The National Interest. “Obviously the flag is a symbol of the state internationally, but it also symbolises the state internally to the Irish people,” says Tuohy.
“There are certain guidelines pertaining to the Irish flag; no flag or pennant should be flown above the national flag and when the national flag has become worn or frayed it should not be used in any manner implying disrespect.
“However, where a flag is part of the background furniture, does it retain value as the symbol of a nation?
“I believe there is an appetite to re-examine these symbols and not just to accept them. Perhaps as a people we have learned the hard way that blind faith in systems and authorities, whether it is politicians, the Church or the medical establishment, brings its own perils. If politicians don’t fulfil the role asked of them we replace them; if our national symbols are now outdated, then perhaps we need to re-examine their role in our lives.”
The third large site to be used during Arttrail is located on Perry Street and was previously a furniture shop. Goran Galic and Gian-Reto Gredig will use the space to display their photographs from a research trip to Bosnia.
“The work looks at the effects and causes of the conflict,” says Tuohy. “There is now a tourist industry which brings visitors around to the sites of former battles. The photographs show how history shapes our surroundings.
“In its way, the exhibition examines the downfalls and benefits of tradition. Ireland’s history, and indeed Cork’s past as a merchant city, still shapes our present. Perhaps at this point in time, we need to evaluate which parts of our history, which traditions and institutions and which symbols still serve our needs.”
www.arttrail.ie
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