The Burren College of Art is to host an exhibition of their MA in Art and Ecology graduates.
The exhibition, Ag Samhlú Athruithe, (Visualizing Change) is a prescient description of current times and will feature Joana Alarcão, Herminia Ayala Reyes, and Post Baccalaureate in Studio Art, Duaa Bilbeisi.
The works by each of these artists from Portugal, Spain and Jordan employ a range of media to investigate concepts of strength, gender, the environment and new directions for the future.
An opening reception of the exhibition will take place on Thursday, August 20th while the exhibition will run until Friday, September 11th. The Gallery will be open to the public Monday-Friday from 9:30am – 5:00pm.
*Attendees are asked to observe HSE safety protocols on entering the gallery, including wearing a face mask and using hand sanitizers provided at the doors.
Artist Bios
Joana Alarcão is a Portuguese artist based in Lisbon. She has a degree in Sculpture from The University of Fine Arts in Lisbon, a diploma of Level IV technician in Ceramic and is currently completing her MA in Art & Ecology at Burren College of Art, Ireland. She had her work showcased in collective exhibitions and recently exhibited solo at the Faculty of Science & Technology in Caparica, Portugal. She also has her work featured in online galleries, Wotisart and A5 Magazines, and has taken part in various residencies and workshops, such as residences of land art and Rural painting workshops.
Duaa Bilbeisi is a Jordanian artist who is using her own experience as a human and woman to oppose all kinds of oppression and to give a stand for all those who are voiceless and oppressed. She has heard them, and uses her drawings and paintings as a medium to support the wellbeing of women and humans by giving them hope, highlighting and raising their own strengths and capabilities to never give up. She uses mark making and etching to express human feelings and emphasise her own experience of struggles, time, determination and hope.
Herminia Ayala Reyes is a graduate of the GMIT Fine Arts Honours degree in (Textiles). Her research and artistic practices draw upon fashion design, traditional crafts, textile arts, costume, set design, and her experience working with theatre companies such as ‘Fibin’, ‘Macnas’ and the ‘Galway Circus Community’.
Utilizing hand weaving, tapestry, and natural fibres, Ayala Reyes’s work focuses on eco-textile processes that minimize damage to the environment and highlight both the potentials of ethical traditional crafts. Through investigating and experimenting, Ayala Reyes adapted a personal and unique contemporary aesthetic. Her daily living relationship with Nature and Art guided her to study the MA in Art and Ecology and live in The Burren.