Arts Council NI News

07/04/09

Home Front Exhibition opens at PLACE, Belfast

A new photographic exhibition, by Omagh artist Joan Alexander, opens at PLACE’s gallery, Fountain Street, Belfast, Thursday 2nd April at 6pm. ‘The Home Front,’ completed using a grant awarded by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, considers the experience of becoming older.

The exhibition captures older people in their home environment developing a body of work using shadow as a marker of time. Joan became interested in this work after returning from a residency in Reims, France. With an equipment grant from the Arts Council’s Support for Individual Artist Programme she embarked upon capturing an ever increasing, but often overlooked section of the community.

Chris Ledger, Arts Development Officer with the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, commented on the importance of this work, saying ”Awarding grants for equipment is just one of the many ways in which the Arts Council supports our talented artists and promotes the significance and value of the arts to the public. In ‘Home front’, Joan has not only put the focus on older people through her images, but has also provided older people with a new opportunity to be directly involved in the artistic process through negotiations with the artist. Joan’s inspiring work reflects contemporary attitudes to the ageing process and will be one of the signifiers marking the changing experience of older people in Northern Ireland.”.

Dr Una Lynch, Cap Research Manager at Queen’s University Belfast said, “Joan has created a powerful and beautiful exhibition which captures the complexity of home for older people as somewhere much more than a building, home as an embodiment of notions of safety, security and a lifetime of memories. Her work is a timely reminder to us all of the need to ensure that older people are supported and enabled to age with dignity and independence.”

'Home Front' runs from the 2nd April - 2nd May at PLACE’s gallery, 40 Fountain Street, Belfast. Gallery opening times are Wednesdays-Saturdays 11:30am-5:30pm with late night opening on Thursdays until 7:30pm.