Scully's construction worksVertical stones standing starkly against layers of horizontal ones were described as central to the Sean Scully show at the Kerlin Gallery, which opened in Dublin this week. "It's a very particular view of the walls of Aran," said Darragh Hogan, a director of the Kerlin Gallery. "They are beautiful documents of a dying tradition . . . And they give a clue as to how he constructs his abstract paintings."
Scully's use of the "anonymous art" of stone masons was what captivated film-maker Philip King.
"Each wall has a design. They knew what stone would fit the space by the sound of the tap," he said, quoting Scully's essay in the Walls of Aran book, which was launched to coincide with the opening of the exhibition. Eddie O'Reilly, acting education officer with Co Wexford VEC, nodded in agreement with King.
Another guest, Frances Byrne, recalled Scully as a little boy growing up in Inchicore. He had "beautiful blond curls. He was a lovely little boy," she said. Today, Scully is recognised as one of the leading abstract painters of his generation. He attended the opening, greeting friends and chatting to Colm Tóibín, who wrote the introduction to the book.
As well as a portfolio of photographs, the show includes three abstract paintings. "They are very direct," said fellow artist Seán Mulcahy. "They have a very strong presence, even though they are entirely abstract." Others who attended the show to view the work and to congratulate Scully himself were Enrique Juncosa, director of the Irish Museum of Modern Art, Barbara Dawson, director of Dublin City Gallery, the Hugh Lane, artist Cecily Brennan; Noelle Campbell-Sharp, Arts Council member and founder of the Cill Rialaigh Artists' Retreat, Australian art photographer Alexis Bowman and Joe Mulholland, director of the MacGill Summer School.
Sean Scully, Walls of Aran continues at the Kerlin Gallery, Anne's Lane, South Anne Street, Dublin 2, until Sat, June 2
Sean Scully, Walls of Aran, with an introduction by Colm Tóibín, is published by Thames and Hudson
Author of his own destiny
The Pavilion in Dún Laoghaire was packed to capacity to hear Joseph O'Connor read this week from his latest novel, Redemption Falls.
Writers Maeve Binchy and her husband Gordon Snell, Brian Keenan, Declan Hughes, Philip Casey, Dermot Bolger, Anthony Glavin, Leo Cullen and poet Katie Donovan were all in attendance.
"The language is very beautiful in this book. It's very brave and there are all kinds of registers of language . . . and the storytelling is fabulous," said Geoff Mulligan, O'Connor's editor. The book, he said, "is set in the aftermath of the American Civil War. There's a love story and it's an extraordinary picture of America at that time."
UCD's Prof Declan Kiberd, who spoke at the reading, recalled meeting O'Connor first as "a tousle-headed freshman at UCD - and he struck me at once by his unusual blend of social idealism, immense good sense and imaginative audacity". "He was," he said, "like most of my really gifted students, far too clever to do a PhD." Having completed a Master's degree, the young writer, said Prof Kiberd, "became the laureate of the Ryanair students", writing about "the first generation of young emigrants in London".
O'Connor's wife, Anne-Marie Casey, who wrote the script for the recently screened television adaptation of Maeve Binchy's short story Anner House, was there too. Other friends included Jim Culleton of Fishamble Theatre Company, actor Nick Dunning and his wife Lise-Ann McLaughlin, and actor Geraldine Plunkett, who is currently playing opposite her son Marcus Lamb and Judith Ryan in a comedy by Canadian playwright Daniel McIvor at Bewley's Cafe Theatre.
"It's nice to be reading here in this theatre, which was the site of the old cinema where I saw my first movie in 1969, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," said O'Connor.
Redemption Falls by Joseph O'Connor is published by Harvill Secker. See review, W12
Birdsong of the Middle East
Human rights abuses in the Middle East are laid bare in a new book launched in Dublin this week.
"I couldn't keep silent about the human rights abuses on both sides," said Felicity Heathcote, author of The Resting Place of the Moon, which was launched in Dublin by Dr Maurice Manning, president of the Irish Human Rights Commission and a senator.
"It was impossible to see what I saw working in the UN and the refugee camps and not to write," said Heathcote, who has spent several years in Palestine working for the UN.
Her book "should be read by all politicians. It's imaginative . . . It should make people angry and that's its intention," said Manning. "Arabs increasingly find themselves without a political voice . . . The plight of the Palestinian people provides a snapshot of the difficulties in the region. Caught between Israeli armed forces and feuding militants, their quest for a decent life continues," he said.
The Palestinian ambassador, Dr Hikmat Ajjuri, also welcomed The Resting Place of the Moon at the launch. Referring to Heathcote's literary device of using birds to tell the stories within the book rather than her own voice, he said, "the birds do not lie, and the birds have no boundaries; they can see everywhere and they can tell the truth and I hope all of you read the book."
Composer Raymond Deane, one of the founding members of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign said the book "presents a lot of factual information about the Middle East in an accessible format". He hopes the book will inform "people who might otherwise get a distorted view".
"It's heart-breaking. I think it will make people think. It gives you an insight into what's happening in Palestine," said physiotherapist Marie-Elaine Grant. "It's the birthplace of Christianity, and yet we are witnessing the most appalling human suffering." Also present at the launch were St Vincent's General Hospital surgeon David Charles and Rev Ted Ardis of Donnybrook with his wife Hilary.
The Resting Place of the Moon by Felicity Heathcote is published by The Otherworld Press
Music vids for rock'n'roll kids
Images and music flowed and the show began to rock as MayKay Geraghty, lead singer with Fight Like Apes, sang Lend Me Your Face in the band's new music video. The eight-minute film was made by film student Briin Bernstein, and opened a special showcase screening in Dublin's Sugar Club this week.
The featured music videos were made in Dublin by visiting film students from the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University in collaboration with Irish bands. Eight music videos were screened in total.
Only The Frames and Duke Special, who were both touring and travelling in the US, were unable to attend the premiere. All the other young bands were present for the gala screening.
"The students bring a great energy and a new perspective to the whole thing," said Niall Stokes, editor of Hot Press. "The synergy is brilliant," he added, explaining that Hot Press magazine launched a talent search last year to find the artists and bands most deserving of the video treatment. New young bands chosen for this collaboration with budding film-makers "were selected ahead of some very big names".
Now in its fifth year, the collaboration has to date resulted in a total of 62 music videos. "They are learning about a different way of looking at the music and the bands are learning about the business too," said Stokes.
But the project would not be possible, he said, "if there wasn't brilliant music being made by Irish musicians all the time".
"I just fell in love with the song. It's a very subtle, multi-faceted song; it has so many meanings for so many people I felt I just had to put images to it," explained Brandon Lee Washington, a third-year film student at NYU, who created the music video to go with People All Get Ready, a song by The Frames.
The other five bands whose videos were premiered included The Kinetics, DJ Kormac, The Arrangements, Dirty Epics and Television Room.