"Gerard Byrne: In Repertory"
2004-09-16 until 2004-10-23
Project Arts Centre
Dublin, , IE Ireland

Acclaimed Irish artist, Gerard Byrne, has been commissioned by the Project Arts Centre to use its gallery to produce a new body of work. 'In Repertory' marks a continuation of a series of shows which sees Project's gallery being used as a production space. Byrne, who works mainly with photographic and video based media, will, as a point of departure, look at Project's dual function as a venue for both the visual and performing arts. Considering the nature of the spaces allocated for these different uses, the artist will attempt to complicate the expectations of audiences by encouraging them to experience these spaces differently.

In this spirit, the gallery will be transformed from a white cube into a black box, with theatrical elements such as a backdrop and lighting being introduced. In this environment, Byrne will place a number of objects that sit somewhere in the 'blind spot' between sculpture and set design, stepping around the convention that separates the two genres and altering the manner in which they present themselves to the viewer - sculpture often insisting on its physicality and downplaying its theatricality and set design pointing away from itself towards an illusionary narrative.

The overall effect will be to invoke 'theatre' by bringing together a number of references from its canon. Works cited will include classics such as 'Waiting for Godot' (in particular a version performed at the Odeon in Paris in 1961, with a tree designed by Giacometti), the 1943 Broadway production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's 'Oklahoma!' and the 1963 Broadway production of Bertolt Brecht's 'Mother Courage.' A film produced by the artist during his period working at Project will be screened in the gallery from late October.

About Gerard Byrne A Dublin based artist, Gerard Byrne's work is highly regarded internationally. He has been invited to participate in prestigious events such as the Istanbul Biennial (2003), the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York (2003), and Manifesta 4, Frankfurt, (2002). Solo exhibitions have taken place at the Frankfurter Kunstverein (2003) and the Douglas Hyde Gallery, Dublin (2002). Byrne previously exhibited in Project as part of the Billboard Project with 'The End of Architecture is Nigh', (2003).

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