Ireland and the Birth of Europe, an exhibition I co-curated for the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs with Dr Damian Bracken of University College Cork, was launched by Tánaiste Micheál Martin TD in Cork on 28 April.
It is part of the Department of Foreign Affairs cultural programme to mark fifty years of Ireland’s EU membership (EU50). But in planning this exhibition, we wanted to Ireland’s role in the shaping of European identities in the longue durée, going back 1500 years to explore Ireland’s early contributions to the development of the idea of Europe. Our starting point was French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman’s remark, made in 1950, that Columbanus should be considered the patron saint of all those who wished to build a united Europe. He made those comments just weeks after his famous Declaration that set in motion the process of European integration.
The richness of Irish influence on Continental education and learning in the medieval period is stunning and the exhibition is full of wonderful examples. It includes reproductions of illuminated manuscripts and artefacts produced in Ireland, or under Irish influence on the Continent. Many of them are preserved in Continental libraries that have their origins in monasteries founded by Irish scholars.
The exhibition continues to tour the world via the Irish Embassy network, with showings in Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Morocco, the USA, and more. It is concurrently touring Irish venues; see details of the domestic tour here.
The exhibition was beautifully designed by Ruza Leko at Studio Suss. Tá leagan Gaeilge ar fáil freisin.
In 2018-19, I curated a series of three exhibitions in conjunction with EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum and Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs.
‘Blazing a Trail: Lives and Legacies of Irish Diaspora Women’ tells the stories of 21 Irish women worldwide who pioneered in the arts, politics, women’s suffrage, the sciences, humanitarian work and sports, in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The exhibition was curated in collaboration with Herstory Ireland.
The exhibition was first launched in EPIC in November 2018 before travelling to Irish embassies and other venues in over 20 countries. It was also on display at United Nations Headquarters, New York, in February 2019.
Find out more at EPIC’s website, or by reading the photo essay on the RTÉ website.
‘Across the Waves: The Seafaring Irish’ looks at Ireland’s long and varied maritime history, through the themes of trade, migration, exploration and innovation, naval service, and humanitarian work. Learn more about the exhibition here and at Irish Central.
The exhibition had input from descendants of the Earl Grey orphans, descendants of Irish veterans of the Arctic Convoys of 1941-5, and from personnel in the Irish Naval Service. Following the launch at EPIC in March 2019, the exhibition has travelled to Irish embassies and consulates worldwide, including Malta and New York.
In March 2019, I organised a History Ireland Hedge School at EPIC to explore wider themes in Irish maritime history alongside the exhibition.
‘Irish Educators Abroad: Building Something Wonderful’ highlights the long history and lasting legacy of Irish people working in education worldwide over the past 400 years. From Irish Colleges in early-modern Europe, to global missionary work, to teachers who became activists, the stories told in this exhibition enlighten and inspire. It was on display in EPIC from June to September 2019 before travelling to Irish embassies worldwide.
Hear about some Irish educators’ experiences in African countries here, and watch my brief curator’s video here.
These exhibitions were publicised on national and local television, radio, and print media, including RTÉ Radio 1, Newstalk, Virgin television, Dublin City FM, LMFM, Highland Radio, Irish Central, History Ireland, The Times, Irish Tatler, and the Irish Times.
