In August 2010, The President of Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, launched a public art commission through the Per Cent for Art programme. Seven artists were shortlisted to the second stage of the commission, and David Lilburn and Anne Cleary and Denis Connolly (collaborative duo Connolly-Cleary) were subsequently commissioned to produce new artworks, while an existing sculpture by Imogen Stuart was purchased under the scheme. The committee reserved a portion of the budget to develop a Visual Art Education Project for Primary Schools, based in the Curriculum Development Unit (CDU) of the College.

David Lilburn: A Map

Lilburn’s ‘A Map’ is a large-scale drawing (8 x 13 metres) inscribed in Irish limestone, on the exterior wall of the recently completed ‘Tara’ building. The artwork positions Mary Immaculate College in its environment, not only in the topological sense, but from historical, cultural, educational, social, and political viewpoints. The map depicts the river Shannon, from Killaloe to the estuary, revealing and plotting some of the narratives and connections facilitated by the river, such as invasion and flight; immigration and emigration; trade, travel etc. on which contemporary Ireland is built, and which informs the continuing debate on Irish culture and identity today.

Further Details can be found on the artist’s website:

http://www.davidlilburn.ie/commissions-02-a-map-learsceil.php

Lilburn’s original drawing can be viewed here:

http://www.davidlilburn.ie/resources/28nd%20july%20frompdf.pdf

The artist also produced a short video of the installation process:

http://www.davidlilburn.ie/commissions-02-a-map-learsceil-video.php

Cleary-Connolly: Colour Wheels

Colour Wheels is a permanent light installation situated at the entrance to the new Teamhair / TARA building. The installation consists of circles of projected light in primary colours, which periodically overlap to create secondary colours. A computer programme - reacting to data coming from a surveillance camera - controls the dimmers of the projectors, creating more complex interactions of colours with the flux of people moving through the space.

Further details can be found on the artists’ website:

<a href="http://www.connolly-cleary.com" target="A selection of images can be viewed here:

A video of the installation can be viewed here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bnqf2MyZHxA

Imogen Stuart: Window on the World

The Window on the World is a large wooden sculpture which is now housed in a purpose-built meditation space in the main corridor of An Slí in the TARA building. The artwork was formerly called ‘The Famine Window’ and was originally exhibited at a famine exhibition in Boston. According to the artist, the “Fensterkros? or “window-cross? (found in the windows of famine cottages), easily lent itself to the central image of the crucifixion.

Some information about Imogen Stuart’s recent walk through MIC’s sculpture trail:

http://www.mic.ul.ie/latestnews/Pages/ImogenStuartReturnstoMIC.aspx

Mary Immaculate College Percent for Art Open Competition Brief:

http://cmc.ie/opportunities/pdfs/per_cent.pdf

Commission overview on MIC website:

http://www.mic.ul.ie/latestnews/Pages/percentforartschemeatmic.aspx

Local media coverage:

Eugene Phelan ‘Lilburn among artists included in new Mary Immaculate permanent art collection’, Limerick Leader, 17 November 2011

http://www.limerickleader.ie/what-s-on/arts-entertainment/lilburn-among-artists-included-in-new-mary-immaculate-permanent-art-collection-1-3257361

David Lilburn lives in Limerick, where he was born in 1950. He studied History at Trinity College Dublin, Lithography at L’Istituto d’Arte, Urbino, and Art and Design at Limerick School of Art and Design (LSAD). On leaving Art school he lived in the Netherlands for a few years before returning to Ireland in 1979. He taught for a few years in LSAD (where he is currently an external assessor) before moving to the University of Limerick in 1983. He is a member of Limerick Printmakers, an associate member of Cork Printmakers and a Trustee of the National Self-Portrait Collection. Together with artist and writer Jim Savage, he runs ‘Occasional Press’ which publishes art-based books.

http://www.davidlilburn.ie/biography.php

Anne Cleary and Denis Connolly both studied Architecture in Dublin in the 1980’s, before moving to Paris in 1990, where they have lived and worked ever since. They have exhibited worldwide, and are the only Irish artists to have had a solo exhibition in the Pompidou Centre in Paris. Much of Cleary & Connolly’s work is collaborative, with a strong socio-political aspect, both through its subject matter and in its engagement with people. They coined the term “observer participation” to describe their work, which is committed to affirming the active role of the public in art. Exhibitions include: Farmleigh Gallery, Dublin (2012); The Barbican, London (2010); The Pompidou Centre, Paris (2009); Sesc Pompéia, Sao Paulo (2009); Yokohama Triennial, Japan (2005).

http://www.connolly-cleary.com/Home/About_Us.html

Imogen Stuart was born in Berlin in 1927 and currently lives in Dublin. She was apprenticed to Otto Hitzberger, former professor of the National College of Fine Art in Berlin, before moving to Ireland in 1951. Her influences range from German expressionism to early Irish Christian art, and she works in wood, stone, bronze, steel, clay, plaster and terracotta. In 2000, she was elected Professor of Sculpture by the Royal Hibernian Academy, which held one of her first exhibitions in 1949. A retrospective exhibition of her work was held at the RHA in 2002. She has received the Oireachtas art exhibition award (1972) and the ESB Keating McLoughlin award at the RHA annual exhibition (1999), among others. She has also received honoris causa from Trinity College (2002), UCD (2004) and NUI Maynooth (2005). She was recently awarded the McAuley Medal from MIC, the highest honour the College may bestow on an individual, which was presented to her by former President Mary McAleese

http://aosdana.artscouncil.ie/Members/Visual-Arts/Stuart.aspx?lang=ga-ie

Elaine Mulqueen - Project administrator

Prof. Michael A Hayes – President

Minister J. Deenihan (officially launched the scheme at the college on 14th November 2011)

Irish Natural Stone Ltd. (Main contractor for ‘A Map’)

Hugh Kelly (Architect for ‘A Map’)

Per Cent for Art Committee Members:

Dr. Patrick Murphy, Director RHA

Sheila Deegan, Arts Officer, Limerick City Council

Hugh Kelly, Architect of Teamhair/Tara buildings

Prof. Peadar Cremin, former President of the College

John Coady, Vice-President of Administration and Finance

Mairéad Collins, MISU President

Sinéad Dinneen, Lecturer, Visual Arts Department

Tanya Power, Lecturer, Visual Arts Department

MIC Visual Arts Panel:

Dr Michael Finneran, Head of Department of Arts Education & Physical Education

Eucharia McCarthy, Director of the Curriculum Development Unit

Ann-Marie Morrin Visual Art Lecturer

Fiona Quill Visual Art Lecturer