FROM Wednesday July 15, 2020 the public will have the opportunity to view first-hand the final year work of Limerick School of Art & Design, LIT, 2020 Fine Art Graduates, at the Limerick City Gallery of Art (LCGA).
A partnership between LSAD Fine Art Department and LCGA has allowed for this creative final year graduate show Physical Impact to go on display in the spacious art gallery on Perry Square.
In May this year LSAD’s final year students were forced to overcome the limitations set by a world pandemic and launch their end of year showcase on a special online platform www.lsadgraduates.ie, unable to host the renowned graduate show on the Clare Street, Campus.
With Covid 19 restrictions now easing, 36 of the Fine Art graduates will display their work for the ten days (inclusive) from July 15 to July 26 Social Distancing in the large ground floor will allow up to 40 people at a time return to the gallery and enjoy the art on display.
Dr. Tracy Fahey, Head of Department of Fine Art LSAD thanked the staff at the LCGA for their generosity and for offering the gallery to the fine art graduates to display their work, especially at such a crucial juncture in their careers.
“With the advent of the global COVID-19 crisis, all plans for this semester were disrupted; the normal sequencing of research and realisation of final year projects had to take a different trajectory, culminating in the LSAD digital showcase of Impact which launched on May 30,” she said.
“Physical Impact allows for a real-life manifestation of some of the fine art work that went live on the Impact graduate showcase. It allows the public to experience a rich cross-section of work from our students of Painting, Print Contemporary Practice, Sculpture and Combined Media and Photography Film Video.”
“It’s been a very strange year. All around the world, institutions and individuals have had to adapt, rethink, re- shape and reconfigure. It’s been a time of great anxiety and upheaval. But in this period, kindness and solidarity have bloomed.
“We see it all round us in neighbourly acts of goodness, from shared shopping trips to acts of mutual encouragement and support. A lovely example of this support is the way that LCGA have reached out to the Fine Art graduates from LSAD to offer this unexpected show during July 2020,” added Dr Fahey.
“Within this global pandemic, the arts have never been of more value; in terms of comfort, aspiration, distraction and self-expression. It’s so important for our 2020 graduates to feel supported, validated, seen by the visitors to this show.”
Áine Nic Giolla Coda, Lecturer in Painting, who has overseen the project with LCGA, congratulated the graduates on the high standard of work created under difficult circumstances and paid tribute to her colleagues for working with the students to ensure this show can now be brought into the physical domain.
Physical Impact will be open to the public from 10am to 5pm, Monday to Saturday, and 12 noon to 5pm on Sunday, from July 15 to July 26, 2020 and all the work on show will be for sale.
Meanwhile the complete LSAD Graduate Showcase can still be enjoyed on www.lsadgraduates.ie.
