Vanessa Donoso López - A rock can hurt you, a rock can open a nut.
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is delighted to present an exhibition of new works by Vanessa Donoso López.
13 April – 22 June 2025
Over recent years working across Ireland and Spain, Vanessa Donoso López has shaped her latest installation—a gathering of works deeply rooted in the land, its people and their shared cultural heritage. This collection, comprising over 1,000 pieces includes archaeological artefacts and a series of marbled shapes that echo the intricate patterns found on petrified objects and rocks. These re-imagined artefacts are presented in wire caged structures creating an archaeological like installation. Some clay pieces have been hand-moulded by local communities and schools both in Spain and Ireland using locally sourced clay. The clay that was once a rock turns back into rock and into fossilized objects.
Cathaoirleach of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, Councillor Jim O’Leary said “We are extremely proud to host such a thought-provoking exhibition which examines the timely theme of migration by Vanessa Donoso López in the County’s Municipal Gallery.”
Chief Executive of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, Frank Curran added: Vanessa Donoso López’s art is in equal measures visually stunning and intellectually fascinating and I’m sure visitors to dlr LexIcon will enjoy it greatly.”
In a world where migrant journeys often oscillate between physical dislocation and virtual connection, the creation and experience of physical objects offers an anchor to the real - to the here and now. Like a rock that can wound or serve, the migrant's relationship with the land is one of duality—offering grounding and uncertainty, refuge and resistance.
Gallery
