Tuesday 6 November 2012

BIG THANKS LISA & ALL AT THE MUSEUM!!




I am sitting outside the Frisco hotel, on Dowling,in Woolloomooloo,Sydney Australia. Its 10.41.November 6th 2012
There,Thats me located in this moment.
So much has happened in the last 2weeks or so its mind blowing!
I have been to 3 radio stations,Talked to 4 more on the phone.here is one
 news of the work appeared in two national and on Victorian news papers.
I met with the Directors of the centre for contemporary photography(Melbourne)
And the Director of the Australian centre for photography(Sydney)
Two Fantastic people who were delighted to share their knowledge of  Australian systems with me. I am really looking forward to developing the  relationship with Australia that has been started with the Leaving Dublin exhibition at the Immigration Museum,Melbourne.
In Melbourne all was amazing!
As expected by the exacting yet fluid nature of communications from the Museum over the last 10 months,all at the museum flowed,nothing was left to chance,all works were completed and the exhibition was in place as per spec. on my arrival. Everthing looked so right nothing needed to be moved only one adjustment needed to be made to the biggest image,that of Aoife O'Donnell.
The graphics in the entrance corridor were sweet,the red wall at the end phenomenal.,the colour palate for text,wall,and furniture, all allowed the work to sing as it was intended,about the colourful characters who came from the colourful city Dublin.
The QR code was in place to take people here,the running order of the show,with links to each post as they appeared on the blog however many months before that might have been.
On the night of the opening I think I was just coming out of the jet lag zone,although it may have been that I was on an adrenaline buzz but it was all good.
the CEO of  Museum Victoria, Dr Patrick Greene,opened proceedings,and the museums Manager Padmini Sabastian spoke also and made it so easy for me to then speak off the cuff.
The most important thing I had to say on the night was a heartfelt thank you to all at the museum but in particular to Lisa Collins the person who silently pulled the whole thing together!
The work was also brought to life by the presence of two sitters Conor Savage and Elaine Bannon,they really felt the moment and no doubt

Frances Devlin Glass wrote a great review for Tinteán,and we met so many friends of friends at the opening who have relocated here.Simon Spain,Victoria Rhyle and their daughter Georgia,Terry Mahon ,J.P. Tansey and his beautiful wife Rebecca, Dawn Bennett,Meredith Chipperton,and the fantastic John Francis, journalist who put together the great video piece at the expo.
Diane and  Patrice of Credo communications made my life so stress free during the prelaunch publicity.
All is going so well on this trip and already I have made new work on film with Trish and Stephen and Lynn all in glorious monochrome.
Time has moved on!
Its Late in the evening now and I am holed up in the blue mountains outside Sydney in a couple of days i will be in Perth to follow up on more of my sitters.As I travel I will keep posting images to fb and tumblr  so keep an eye out as they say and know that this project has started to roll with big thanks to the photoireland festival and the Immigration museum melbourne!!