Tuberclerosies

A solo exhibition of newly commissioned work by Cork-based visual artist Kevin Mooney. Informed by mythology, Ireland’s colonial history, and cultural migration, Mooney’s practice explores a speculative art history of Ireland. Pulling on a wide range of references, from influences such as science fiction and horror films to histories of the Irish diaspora, to art history, Tuberclerosies saw the expansion of Mooney’s practice through newly commissioned large-scale paintings, sculptures, hybrid painting/ sculptural works, and works on paper.

Informed by mythology, Ireland’s colonial history, and cultural migration, Mooney’s practice explores a speculative art history of Ireland. This newly commissioned body of work pulled on a wide range of references, from influences such as science fiction and horror films to histories of the Irish diaspora, to art history and Irish visual culture. Mooney explored these thematics through painting, sculptures, hybrid painting and sculptural works, and works on paper.

Tuberclerosies offered a space for contemplation of the complex relationship between Ireland, colonialism, and religion. One strand within this body of work was inspired by texts relating to the lives of Irish saints and the relationship between history and pre-Christian mythology in the early church. Depictions of fictional Irish art historical figures were another element of the work, using them as a lens to examine a “lost” history of Irish portraiture. Transformation and shape-shifting lie at the heart of the motifs in the paintings and sculptures and in the processes of making the work, with motifs sometimes unexpectedly changing form and other forms becoming obscured at various stages of the creation of the work. The materials in the work played with the notion of time, blending influences from folklore and mainstream European, African, and folk-art idioms to create painted and sculptural objects- hybrids both culturally and formally.

This exhibition is supported by The Arts Council.