Ireland’s International Festival of Photography and Visual Culture
PhotoIreland aims to become Ireland’s International Festival for Photography. It will showcase the work of those photographers and artists, national and international, whose critical practice goes from a traditional approach to the medium, to those who question its technical and ideological boundaries, but whose work help us to understand this ever present medium.
Photography has played an important role in Irish Culture ever since Francis Beatty opened Ireland’s first daguerreotype portrait studio on the roof of the Rotunda, Dublin, in October 1841. While Ireland has a strong Photographic tradition and enjoys international recognition thanks to its past and contemporary practitioners, there is to date no major event in Ireland that recognises the importance that Photography has in our culture, or even promotes it as an independent artistic practice.
The Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA), the Royal Hibernian Academy (RHA), the Gallery of Photography (GOP), the Sirius Arts Center (SAC) and other organisations have recognised the importance of the photographic practice through specific awards, by starting their own collections, or by promoting Irish photographers internationally.
Source magazine has been publishing in Ireland since 1991 providing a platform for emerging and established photographers to have their work distributed nationally and internationally.
Belfast Exposed Northern Ireland’s only gallery of contemporary photography who commission, publish & exhibit local and international photographers.
In the last years there has been an increase in the number of photographic exhibitions held in Ireland, and many museums and galleries have already planned very important exhibitions for the coming months.
The Gallery Of Photography and the National Photographic Archive (NPA) are at the forefront of Photography in Ireland, as in conjunction they offer to a wide audience a constant arena for a conversation in relation to the past, present and future of this media.
Unfortunately, there is no single event in Ireland that unifies, strengthen or celebrates their effort in the cultivation of a photographic literacy. Although there is a strong support for other artistic practices, there has never been an International Photographic Festival held in Ireland.
PhotoIreland wants to fill up this enormous gap in Irish culture and, in doing so, join many European capitals like London, Paris and Madrid, who enjoy the celebration of Photographic Festivals that encourage their citizens to participate in a number of events, even outside the exhibition agenda, like through educational programs, workshops, portfolio reviews, guided tours, etc.
Purpose
PhotoIreland Festival will be committed to the cultivation of a deeper understanding and a critical interest around photographic knowledge. The purposes of the festival can be divided in two:
The Irish context
- To raise awareness on the Photographic language, to contribute to the exploration of new ways of seeing, and to underline its crucial importance in today’s visual world.
- To bring national and international Art Photographers and their work to Irish audiences through exhibitions, talks, discussions, lectures, guided tours, and workshops.
- To engage local communities into an everlasting relationship with the Arts, and to promote new ways of self-expression and self-representation.
- To establish an Internationally recognised event that contributes to the recovery and growth of the Irish tourism industry.
International arena
- Contributing to the world’s photographic legacy by exporting to an international audience via touring programs, the Internet, and cultural exchanges the work of upcoming and established Art Photographers whose practice is developed in Ireland.
- To tap into the international networks where Irish curators, art critics, galleries, art magazines, etc. can enrich their practices and research around Photography
- To establish strong bonds with other International Photo Festivals worldwide, propitiating a new channel to develop cultural exchange.
Timeframe
PhotoIreland will commence in July 2010.
We intend to celebrate the festival in July every year, coinciding with a seasonal low activity in the gallery art scene. The duration will be of one month, but we aim to extend this timeframe to two months if the necessary conditions are met. There will be a press release soon to announce the celebration of the first ever international photographic festival in Ireland.
