Echo and Call – Art and Emigration

One of the dilemmas of emigration is that the first generation emigrant seldom becomes fully integrated by the adopted culture but has lost something, perhaps irretrievable, from the native culture. It is also often the case that second/third generation Irish Americans may have distorted perceptions of an Ireland many have never seen while the long absent returned emigrant, through the experience of cultural dislocation may be disappointed by the anticipated dream or shock of return. This paper analysed how contemporary Irish visual artists have engaged with such problematics of emigration – loss, trauma, memory and perception. It also traced a shift from the representational/descriptive to the experiential in work by contemporary artists. To this end it explored paintings by Michael Farrell and T.P. Flanagan and video works by Frances Hegarty and Ailbhe Ni Bhrain. Also being developed as an exhibition.