Temple Bar Gallery + Studios to open its doors for the Dublin Art Book Fair tomorrow

Temple Bar Gallery + Studios in the city centre is turning into a gathering point for carefully curated art publications, original artwork, conversations and events from tomorrow, Thursday 24^th, when it will open its doors for the annual Dublin Art Book Fair, with the event running until 4th December.

A showcase of art books produced by artist-makers and specialist publishers, both Irish and international, on the subjects of art, design, visual culture, philosophy and architecture, as well as select fiction and poetry, awaits visitors to the twelfth Dublin Art Book Fair.

The books include 100 limited-edition artist books that demonstrate the possibilities of the book as a form of art, alongside selected publications nominated by artists and people from the fields of publishing, design, art, visual culture and academia.

The line-up extends beyond physical books, and an 11-day programme of talks, events and workshops is also taking place, which have ‘A Caring Matter’ as the theme.

Compiled by guest curator Rosie Lynch, who is Creative Director of Workhouse Union in Co. Kilkenny and an advocate for community-led housing, the programme puts the idea of care at the centre of ways of thinking about communities, the environment, buildings and towns, and how people work, live and make art.

Among the programme highlights of Dublin Art Book Fair, which is Ireland’s only dedicated art book event, are:

• Artist Commission — Marielle MacLeman, 24th November – 4th December: A specially commissioned new textile work by Galway-based Scottish visual artist Marielle MacLeman will be on display in the Gallery. Titled ‘Care Quilt’ and ‘Moral Boundaries I’, the artist has used plant dyes, such as blackberry, as well as tumble drier lint, for this large piece, which draws attention to the invisible labour and role of care.
• Open Studio — Niamh O’Malley, 30th November, 4.00pm: Niamh O’Malley is Ireland’s representative at this year’s Venice Biennale 2022 with Temple Bar Gallery + Studios. This event invites people to visit her artist’s studio to discuss the relationship of her publication ‘Gather’ to the exhibition at the Venice Biennale 2022.
• Conversation — Architecture & Care, 30th November, 6.00pm: A conversation will be led by architect and urban designer Emma Geoghegan, architect and historian Carole Pollard, urban studies researcher Juliet Davis, and architect Ailbhe Cunningham, looking at the theme of care in relation to buildings and the city, and asking about how we care for our buildings, and how can cities care for people.
• Talk — A Table in Ballybeg, 1st December, 6.00pm: Poet, artist and editor Simon Cutts from Coracle Press sets his talk around A Table in Ballybeg, showing publications from the repertoire of this small publishing press, based between the hills of South Tipperary, where he, with writer and artist Erica Van Horn, has been making books since 1996.
• Book Launch and Conversation — ‘The Story of Castalia’, 2nd December, 6.00pm: Co. Kilkenny-based visual artist Brianna Hurley will discuss her new graphic book ‘The Story of Castalia’, and how its themes of lush landscapes, bodily transformations, daring adventures and battles relate to ways of understanding and navigating times of great uncertainty and ecological and social turmoil.
• Open Studio — Atoosa Pour Hosseini, 4th December, 2.00pm: Temple Bar Gallery + Studios artist Atoosa Pour Hosseini invites visitors to her studio to present two different publications that have been an important part of her recent work: a substantial monograph of the past ten years, as well as a new artist book produced for Dublin Art Book Fair.
• Walking Tour — Impressions of Temple Bar: A History of Printing & Lettering, 4th December, 11.30am: Join Dr Mary Ann Bolger, lecturer in Design History and Visual Culture at TU Dublin, for an informal ramble through the print and lettering history of Temple Bar, taking in the site where the first book was printed in Ireland.
• Art Walk — Bookshops of Temple Bar, 27th November, 12.00pm and 30th November, 2.00pm: Embark on an hour-long guided art walk through Temple Bar to discover the rich collection of bookshops and meeting the booksellers along the way.

Announcing tomorrow’s opening of Dublin Art Book Fair, Clíodhna Shaffrey, Director of Temple Bar Gallery + Studios, said: “Temple Bar Gallery + Studios is committed to Dublin Art Book Fair as a space for artistic creativity, books, conversation and exchange. Every year we receive a substantial number of artist books, and every year we are surprised at the potential for the artist book.

“There are stunning limited edition books made by artists, designers and writers; the result of various processes, print, text and drawing, with consideration of layout, design, folds, fonts, paper and concept. They inventively push what the shape of an artist book can be.

“This year there are 136 artist books that hold their place with nominated book titles, independent publishers – Irish and International presses –  and more.

“We are thrilled to work with our guest curator, Rosie Lynch, the inspirational director of Callan Workhouse Union and her theme ‘A Caring Matter’. We are delighted to present a commissioned work by visual artist Marielle MacLeman, ‘Care Quilt’ – part of an ongoing text artwork, based on ideas of care.”

Also commenting, Rosie Lynch, guest curator of Dublin Art Book Fair, said: “It’s a privilege for me to have guest-curated this year’s Dublin Art Book Fair.

“I’ve designed a programme with the theme of ‘A Caring Matter’, and this is explored through the books themselves and an 11-day programme of talks, events and workshops.

“They will explore the role that care plays from many aspects, including how we build communities of solidarity and belonging, to how we care for our buildings and towns.

“We want to bring care to the heart of our connections and conversations at this year’s Dublin Art Book Fair.”

Dublin Art Book Fair is taking place at Temple Bar Gallery + Studios, 24th November – 4th December, and has free entry.

All programme events are also free to attend, but booking is essential at www.templebargallery.com/exhibitions/dublin-art-book-fair-2022, where full programme details are available.

Dublin Art Book Fair is funded by Henry J Lyons, the Arts Council of Ireland, Dublin City Council, and Dublin UNESCO City of Literature.