Engaging with Sculpture
A second series of monthly presentations on aspects of sculpture in Dublin will be broadcast via Zoom starting in November 2021. The subject matter of each of the six hour-long sessions is listed below. Each session will include a short lecture on the topic in question, interaction with a relevant artist or art professional and a Q/A with the attendees. The lecturer, Paula Murphy, is a specialist in the history and theory of sculpture and has published widely on Irish sculpture. A UCD emeritus professor, she is a member of the Steering Group of Sculpture Dublin.
- Engaging with Sculpture: Stone.
Friday 12 November, 1pm (Zoom)
This talk will explore the use of stone in sculpture in the city and include discussion with a sculptor who works in stone. A visit to the sculptor’s studio will examine the tools that are used in the process and identify the difficulties of working with the material.
Guest Speaker: Sculptor and Conservator, Jason Ellis
Watch the recording of the talk below
- Engaging with Sculpture: Bronze.
This talk will explore the use of bronze in sculpture in the city and include discussion with a sculptor who casts in bronze. A visit to the foundry will show something of the casting process. The essential differences between working in stone and bronze will be identified.
Guest Speaker: Sculptor Anna Campbell
Watch the recording of the talk below
- Engaging with Sculpture: Mixed Media.
This talk will examine the use of mixed media in sculpture in the city and include discussion with a sculptor who uses a range of different media in their work. It will recognise the extent to which sculpture today can be made out of anything. A visit to an artist’s studio will reveal the varied materials and processes that can be involved in the making of a piece of sculpture and the reasons for using them.
Guest Speaker: Sculptor Isabel Nolan
Watch the recording of the talk below
- Engaging with Sculpture: Education.
This talk will examine the education of sculptors in Dublin since its beginnings in the Modelling Schools of the Royal Dublin Society. Discussion with a professor of sculpture will enhance our understanding of the way in which sculpture is taught today in art schools when carving and modelling are no longer the only ways in which sculpture is made.
Guest Speaker: Brian Hand
Watch the recording of the talk below
- Engaging with Sculpture: Portraiture.
This talk will examine sculpted portraits. Much of the sculpture in the public domain is portraiture – statue or bust – and many institutions throughout the city have large holdings of bust portraits. Discussion with a sculptor of portraits will identify the ways in which the approaches to a painted and sculpted portrait differ.
Guest Speaker: Vera Klute
Watch the recording of the talk below
- Engaging with Sculpture: Exhibition.
This talk will examine significant sculpture exhibitions that have taken place in the city, while also identifying the rarity of such events. Painting exhibitions are and have been considerably more common occurrences. Discussion with a museum curator who has worked on a sculpture exhibition will identify the reasons for this.
Guest Speakers: Ruairí Ó Cuív & Rory Tangney