Artists selected for Open Call exhibitions for 2027, 2028 and 2029

Dún Laoghaire‑Rathdown County Council Arts Office is delighted to announce the award of four exhibitions, selected through a widely advertised Open Call process which was open to professional artists living in Ireland and attracted significant interest. The selected artists will exhibit their work in 2027, 2028 and 2029.

The artists are:

2027:
Noelle Gallagher (emerging artist)

Noelle’s moving image artwork Forest/ry will be exhibited alongside a series of paintings which are companion pieces to the film, evoking a slower, more measured response to the themes of the work. She will also exhibit new work from her slow‑art project with the Woodland Symposium, responding to ongoing woodland restoration at Interface, the artist studio and residency centre in Connemara.

2027:
Sarah O’Brien and Kathy Tynan

Artists Sarah O’Brien and Kathy Tynan will work in collaboration to exhibit their paintings in a way that elicits new readings of the work. By locating common ground as well as points of departure between their art practices, the exhibition will reflect on painting by the sea, the effects of motherhood on art‑making, how a painting is built, and the chance encounters that come about through conversation and collaboration.

2028:
Marielle MacLeman

Exploring loss and preservation amid scientific research to improve native woodland, The Visitors is a playful yet critical lament on Ireland’s built and natural heritage. Made using scavenged materials, many gathered in the wake of storms or human activity, the artworks interact like a set. It is a room for visitors – invited and invasive – ready to come apart for the next act.

2029:
Sinéad Ní Mhaonaigh

Sinéad Ní Mhaonaigh will exhibit a range of paintings, all works on canvas. Her work is innately concerned with the material qualities of paint and the physical act of painting itself. Her paintings achieve an ‘opening up’ of landscape that considers universal themes of language, ancestry and timeless depictions of place.

Commenting on the exhibitions, An Cathaoirleach, Cllr Jim Gildea,  Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council:

“The Open Call Exhibitions provide an opportunity for artists to present work to new audiences in our Municipal Gallery. I would like to congratulate the four artists and really look forward to seeing their shows.”

Chief Executive of Dún Laoghaire‑Rathdown County Council, Frank Curran, added:

“Dún Laoghaire‑Rathdown County Council is delighted to announce these awards. We are very pleased to continue to bring high‑quality exhibitions to our audiences in Dún Laoghaire‑Rathdown.”

More information, including notes about the artists, available on this webpage.