At the art gallery
"Persistent Illusion" by Rita Duffy
(I would like to appologise in advance for the quality of the photos. I used the phone in a hurry as I didn’t want to interfere to much with other members of the public)
Yesterday I went to the art gallery. The beautifully curated “Body of work” exhibition, was complemented by other exhibitors and works. To me, the solo exhibition “Persistent Illusion” by Belfast born Rita Duffy stood out and left an excellent impression.
“I ask myself on a regular basis, what role does arts and culture play in helping us get beyond outdated thinking?
There was never a border established in the Irish imagination, and perhaps now is the time to put arts and culture at the centre of our thinking in an effort to sidestep our history of personal suffering and dysfunctional politics.
I can’t see any way forward other than taking the big step - who are we, how do we share this island? That requires transforming ourselves and how we function as a collective” - Rita Duffy
“It’s a British construct to pretend the war in the North has been about Protestants and Catholics. Growing up in Belfast my family experience was one of cultural identity denial, not religious conflict. Every winter my mother knitted Aran sweaters for us all and we wore them as we exited Belfast before the 12th of July, for our southern summer holiday. She was aware her subversive stitch was observed by the neighbours and for that brief moment of departure she reveled in her well-crafted Irish identity.”
“Absolutely everything in the north is political, we are living in the landscape of colonial legacy.” - Rita Duffy
“An artist known for her Northern Irish roots and her pervasive interest in social justice, Rita Duffy says that identifying herself with old style nationalism in the context of the climate crisis is problematic, even as a large political shift is underway in her native Northern Ireland.” - the gallery
“I think there’s a phenomenal, unstoppable new energy bubbling up in Ireland. Now more than ever we must ‘unite’ and together address the big urgent issue - climate change.” - Rita Duffy
The Housewife Series from 2022 contains 15 pieces of oil on linen, 25 x 30 cm. Here are some of them.
