An exhibition at the Hugh Lane Gallery
To mark the centenary of the birth of Joseph Beuys, the Hugh Lane Gallery presents a focused exhibition looking back on the artist's relationship to Ireland. The German artist was hugely influential on the contemporary art scene in the second half of the twentieth century, through his teaching, his engagement with social and political concerns and his symbolic use of materials. He had a particular interest in the Celtic world and in Irish myth, literature and landscapes as sources for cultural renewal and healing.
At the centre of this exhibition are the three blackboards that Beuys created in the Hugh Lane Gallery in October 1974. Beuys wrote and drew on the blackboards while giving a lecture during the exhibition of his drawings, "The Secret Block for a Secret Person in Ireland". The "Secret Block" exhibition also travelled to the Ulster Museum, Belfast, and Beuys gave similar lectures across the island of Ireland, provoking excitement, inspiration, denunciation and bewilderment in turn.
Alongside the blackboards, the 2021 exhibition at the Hugh Lane Gallery will feature photographs by Caroline Tisdall that further illuminate Beuys' visit to Ireland in 1974. Beuys remained an inspirational force in Ireland throughout the 1970s and 80s. His work was included in the 1977 Rosc exhibition at the Hugh Lane Gallery, and in Rosc '84 at the Guinness Visitor Centre. This exhibition will include archive material that reflects this ingoing relationship.
Opening Hours
Closed Mondays
Tuesday to Thursday 9.45am– 6pm
Friday 9.45am – 5pm
Saturday 10am – 5pm
Sunday 11am – 5pm
Presented by the Hugh Lane Gallery
Curated by Logan Sisley
In cooperation with the Goethe-institut Irland, the exhibition will be accompanied by an extensive supporting programme of film screenings, talks and lectures, which will start in September.
29 September - 24 October 2021 - Film programme with talks
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