Reimagined Arts Festival sells out

Of the 27 events organised for the inaugural autumn programme of the Galway Arts Festival, almost all have already sold out – albeit with a much-reduced audience allowed.

But sure to be a draw to the picturesque waterside quay in the Claddagh is one of the largest outdoor installations ever to be seen in Ireland, with free access to all, 24 hours a day.

Commissioned as part of the Galway 2020 programme, Mirror Pavilion by John Gerrard officially opens today (Thursday) with its huge mirrored box with a high-resolution LED wall that will feature what the artist describes as a virtual world simulating the landscape, which uses the same technology as gaming.

The Claddagh part of the installation is called Corn Walk and features four folk figures or Straw Boys, who symbolize the history of grain milling in the city when water provided a sustainable clean energy source.

It will remain in the city until September 26. On October 11 the structure moves to the Derrigimlagh Bog in Connemara – a key discovery point of the Wild Atlantic Way which celebrates the Marconi Wireless Station where Alcock and Brown crash-landed in 1919 after completing the first transatlantic flight.

Here the LED wall will feature Leaf Work and a character clad in oak leaves who walks in a circle based on the position of the sun.

The Festival Gallery returns from this Saturday to the An Post building on William Street with a major new exhibition with Irish artist Hughie O’Donoghue called Night Cargo and Three Women by internationally acclaimed video artist Bill Viola. Entry is again free but must be booked online in advance to ensure social distancing.

See full coverage in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now – or you can buy a digital copy. See details here on www/connachttribune.ie