Brian Lalor: Retrospective

Brian Lalor: Retrospective
27 July to 12 October 2024

Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre is delighted to present Brian Lalor: Retrospective, a retrospective survey exhibition of the work of West Cork-based artist and writer Brian Lalor. Curated by art historian Vera Ryan and including work from the seventies to the present, this exhibition provides an opportunity to explore the breadth of Brian Lalor’s practice over almost six decades and serves as a tribute to his lifelong dedication and contribution to Ireland’s cultural heritage.

The exhibition primarily showcases Lalor’s prowess in printmaking while also featuring publications, drawings, ceramics, photographs, objects, artifacts and audio presentations. Trained as an artist and architect, Brian Lalor is a master printmaker, a superb draughtsman, an art historian, a travel writer, editor and memoirist. In his work, the Arts and Crafts Movement’s philosophy of collaboration, and of the artist as writer as well as practitioner is evident.

His role in Graphic Studio, Dublin and in Cork Printmakers (as member, chairperson and historian); as founder director of both the Blue House Gallery, a small artist-led gallery in Schull, and the Ballydehob Arts Museum, devoted to commemorating the rich tradition of the arts of West Cork; and his donation of a significant historic print collection to the National Gallery of Ireland, make him a leader in the Irish art community.

Throughout his career, Lalor has drawn inspiration from various sources, including the Irish landscape, mythology, and everyday life. His works often reflect a deep connection to nature and a keen observation of human experiences, capturing moments of beauty, introspection, and emotion. At the core of all his art is close observation, great graphic skill and a highly educated analytic mind with a sense of wit and detail. His work reminds us of the importance of the built environment and people, their actions and movements at a particular time. Viewing his work, it is impossible to deny the contingency of the worlds he describes.

Brian Lalor has exhibited his prints and drawings internationally, while his books have been published in many countries. The recipient of numerous awards, he has occupied leadership positions in a wide range of organisations across the associated disciplines of art, architecture, archaeology, arts administration, editing and curating. Now in his eighties, Brian Lalor has made an enormous contribution to the artistic and cultural life of Ireland and this ambitious retrospective at Uillinn acknowledges and celebrates his life’s work.

The exhibition is accompanied by an illustrated book Brian Lalor: Retrospective, with essays by Anne Hodge, Curator of Prints and Drawings at the National Gallery of Ireland; Dr. Angela Griffith, Assistant Professor, Dept. of History of Art and Architecture, TCD; as well as an extensive interview by Vera Ryan, concluding with an afterword by the artist.

We are also delighted that on the occasion of this exhibition, a new, revised edition of Cork has been published by The Gallery Press. First published in 1977 with poems by Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin and drawings by Brian Lalor., it contains a sequence of poems accompanied by exquisitely detailed drawings of Cork city almost half a century ago.

A series of events, workshops, tours and printmaking demonstrations accompany the exhibition.

Launch of the short film Maker: Brian Lalor by 10HandsCrafts, Thursday 22 August at 2.00pm

Followed by a gallery tour by Brian Lalor. Free and no booking required.

Printmaking Demonstration by Brian Lalor, Saturday 7 September at 12 noon

Brian Lalor invites the general public to a printmaking demonstration and gallery conversation on the art of print.

Brian will demonstrate how a variety of original and small edition prints are created using a small portable press in the gallery. Free and no booking required.