VISITORS TO Wexford Co. Council may be inclined to get in, get out and get gone, but with a new exhibition by members of the Arts Ability programme on display, they may find their eye being caught by the sheer colour and vibrancy adorning the walls.
‘A Preponderance of Colour’ is the latest exhibition to take over the grey, vast and airy space in the building’s main atrium. It follows hot on the heels of the hugely successful and impressive ‘This lasted until dawn…’ exhibition which was given on loan from the Irish Museum of Modern Art during the summer.
The current exhibition is full of exciting work by service users of the Arts Ability Programmes in St. John’s Hospital, KTAC and Cumas in New Ross, under the guidance of local artist Kathleen Delaney who has been associated with this programme for many years.
Operated as a partnership with the Co. Council, HSE, Wexford Mental Health and the Co. Wexford Community Workshop, the Arts Ability programme has long been lauded for its progressiveness and social inclusion, receiving many plaudits both locally and nationally.
The exhibition was curated by Deirdre Southey who selected and arranged the exhibit with great insight and thought.
It was officially launched by Brian Hand, in the presence of Co. Council Chairman Tony Dempsey who, in his speech remarked that whoever came up with the exhibition’s title was a genius as the work, he said, “leaps off the walls”.
Brian Hand pointed out that Van Gogh had only enjoyed an eight-year career, with much of his time spent in asylums. He painted when he was well and his works reflected the darker times in his life. But he remarked that these works were very positive with so much colour.
He added that there was no conformity in the works, no hyperrealism, just what the artists felt and believed.
With over 70 works, in paint and sculpture, and artists ranging in age from teenage up to more mature people, there is truly something for everyone at this vibrant exhibition.
The exhibition runs until October 9, 2015 during office hours of Wexford Co. Council.
[Full story and review in this week’s Echo]
Exhibitors pictured with Cllr Tony Dempsey (Chairman, Wexford County Council), Deidre Southey (Curator), Brian Hand (Wexford Campus, Carlow IT), John Carley (Director of Services, Wexford County Council), Philip Knight (Assistant Staff Officer) at the official opening of the art exhibition ‘Preponderance of Colour’ in the Wexford County Council Buildings. Pic: Jim Campbell
