June 13th, 2019
Renowned Artists to Speak at Ulster Museum
Artists Jack Pakenham and Gerry Gleason, whose work features in the acclaimed National Museums NI Troubles Art exhibition, will give an insight into their artistic practice and illustrious careers, at talks in the Ulster Museum this summer.
The Troubles Art exhibition is currently on show in the Irish Linen Centre and Lisburn Museum as part of a of an 18-month tour of cross border venues. It is as 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).
Jack Pakenham will deliver a talk in the museum on Wednesday 19 June. Among the artworks in the Troubles Art travelling exhibition is Pakenham’s Your Move, 1976. The painting depicts unidentified paramilitaries planning a terrorist attack using a street map like a board game. Pakenham wanted to show how these people actively prepared their plans knowing that they would potentially kill, maim or harm human beings or destroy buildings and property.
In his early works he included images of soldiers, riots and paramilitaries demonstrating how we were living in an ‘abnormal world’. Self-taught as a painter, Jack is often cited as one of the first artists to respond to the Troubles in any sustained way.
Gerry Gleason will deliver his talk at the Ulster Museum on Wednesday 14 August. Much of Gleason’s art practice has played out against the backdrop of the Troubles, as he explains: “My approach was oblique, to try to understand human nature and the human condition and society under extreme stress, loss of human life and in the end, the road to conflict resolution and power-sharing.”
He was a founder member of Belfast’s Queen Street Studios, which operated in Belfast city centre during the Troubles, and has featured in numerous national and international exhibitions.
Admission to the talks and exhibition is free and can be booked through the National Museums’ NI website www.nmni.com/Whats-on.
Troubles Art exhibition will run in the Irish Linen Centre & Lisburn Museum until Saturday, June 29. It will then tour to Fermanagh County Museum (July - December 2019), The Market House, Venue and Gallery, Monaghan (January - February 2020) and Armagh County Museum (February - May 2020).
The exhibition 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.
Alongside the exhibition is an opportunity to get involved in community engagement programmes that further explore the period of the Troubles through site visits, workshops and opportunities to leave creative and artistic responses.
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.
ENDS
For additional information or interview requests please contact Karen Friel, k.friel@nervecentre.org or telephone 02871 260 562.
Note to Editor
Special EU Programmes Body PEACE IV
The Special EU Programmes Body is a North/South Implementation Body sponsored by the Department of Finance in Northern Ireland and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in Ireland.
It is responsible for managing two EU Structural Funds Programmes, PEACE IV and INTERREG VA which are designed to enhance cross-border co-operation, promote reconciliation and create a more peaceful and prosperous society.
The Programmes operate within a clearly defined area including Northern Ireland, the Border Region of Ireland and in the case of INTERREG VA, Western Scotland.
The PEACE IV Programme has a value of €270 million and aims to promote peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland.
For more information on the SEUPB please visit www.seupb.eu
National Museums NI
National Museums NI is Northern Ireland’s foremost cultural and heritage museum group welcoming over 900,000 visitors a year. The group includes the Ulster Museum, Ulster Folk Museum, Ulster Transport Museum and Ulster American Folk Park. We are the custodians of the National Collection of 1.4 million objects which are multidisciplinary, diverse and span all time periods and reflect the creativity, innovation, history, culture and people of Northern Ireland and beyond.
www.nmni.com
Nerve Centre
The Nerve Centre is Northern Ireland’s leading creative media arts centre with sites in Derry~Londonderry and Belfast. More than 120,000 people a year benefit from the Nerve Centre’s wide-ranging programme of arts events, cutting edge projects, creative learning centres, training opportunities and state-of-the-art production facilities.
