Major National Museum NI’s Troubles Art Exhibition Crosses Border to Monaghan

The acclaimed National Museums NI exhibition, Troubles Art, will go on show at the Market House in Monaghan from Thursday 9 January as part of an ongoing 18-month tour of cross border venues.

The major exhibition, featuring artists' responses to the Troubles in Northern Ireland and border counties, is part of the Making the Future project, a cross-border cultural heritage programme funded through the PEACE IV Programme, managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB).

 The touring exhibition comprises over 20 works, including paintings, drawings and photographs, from renowned artists such as Geordie Morrow, Rita Duffy and Joseph McWilliams. It explores a broad range of themes which are universal to conflict – such as suffering and loss, violence and destruction, imprisonment, sectarianism, traditions, territory, and life in the midst of turmoil.

The exhibition includes National Museums NI’s most recent acquisitions, including a series of images from acclaimed Magnum photographer, Donovan Wylie. Maze Demolition Series [Diptych], 2007 is Wylie’s record of the physical structure of the Maze prison over a six-year period, during its closure and eventual demolition.

Moving the exhibition across the border represents the first time National Museums NI’s Troubles collection has travelled to the Republic of Ireland.

William Blair, Director of Collections at National Museums NI, said:

“National Museums NI is delighted to see Troubles Art tour to different museums and venues as part of the Making the Future project. It is great to share some of National Museums NI’s collections with the Market House in Monaghan and to bring these thought-provoking works of art to an even wider audience.”

He added “Through the unique perspectives of artists, the exhibition offers opportunities to consider the Troubles and its effects and provide avenues for exploring the legacy of our past in new and engaging ways which we hope will better inform our future.”

Visitors will also be able to view artwork from artists Joseph McWilliams (Rendezvous with Rainbow, 1976) and Victor Sloan (Holding the Ring, Portadown), based on an image for Sloan’s 1991 Circus, Portadown series.

Monaghan County Arts Officer, Somhairle Mac Conghail, said: “This is a delightful coup for Monaghan County Council to be able to host this Exhibition and to have Troubles Art venturing over the Border to County Monaghan.”

Troubles Art exhibition will run at the Market House until 22 February before moving to its final location at Armagh County Museum (February - May 2020). Admission to the exhibition is free.

Match-funding for the Making the Future project has also been provided by the Executive Office in Northern Ireland and the Department of Rural and Community Development in Ireland.

The Market House in Monaghan is open Monday to Friday, 10am - 5pm (closed for lunch from 1pm - 2pm).