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OUTIS THE simple title of an art exhibition currently running at Kilmainham Gaol. What makes it striking is that the exhibitors are the opposite of “out” – almost all of them are “inside”. The exhibition of 144 pieces is a representative selection of artwork made by current and former inmates from the 14 prisons in the State.

That Outwas a careful choice as a title for the show becomes evident when you realise the theme is repeated throughout. Walk through the rooms and what you see everywhere is a longing for the outside, for a world not constricted by walls. Images of escapism are everywhere. There are vast blue skies, deserted beaches, uncrowded green fields, idyllic countryside cottages, crashing waves, pretty villages, mountain scenes, solitary fishermen, pristine rivers, huge trees, bursts of flowers. Space and light and horizons infuse many of the paintings, watercolours, monoprints and lino-cuttings.