The Clearing House
Garry Loughlin is a contemporary photographer, whose practice consists of documentary, investigative projects, as well as more meditative, observational work, such as his best known work Between Spaces. For Futures, he presents his latest project The Clearing House, an investigation into speculation and evidence (or lack thereof), told through the story of an expelled Russian diplomat from Ireland. The project is a multi-layered narrative of Loughlin’s own photographs and archival materials, weaving a semi-fictional story of the diplomat’s activities in a specific region of Ireland, with the photographer filling the gaps in the story with his own observations, conclusions, and speculations. While searching for hints of the border’s presence, the work also casts light upon the insignificance of such lines to those with power.
It is a challenge to narrow all of a country’s talented practitioners into five individuals, but identifying five artists that represent the diversity of practices is an undertaking that members of the Futures Photography Platform like to take on.
Co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union, Futures pools together the resources and talent programmes of leading photography institutions across Europe, in order to increase capacity, mobility, and visibility of its selected artists. By bringing together a wealth of resources and curatorial expertise, each talent selected by the Futures members gains access to an unprecedented network of professionals, markets and audiences.
PhotoIreland, the Irish member of the platform, is interested in putting forward artists that have demonstrated experimentation with the medium, appreciating those practices that engage with poignant socio-political issues creatively, with defined narratives and personal visual vocabularies. In the selection, special importance is placed on their career stage, as one of the aims of PhotoIreland is to facilitate extra support in establishing international connections and expanding their networks and, in short, helping professionalise their practice.
For the previous editions, PhotoIreland nominated Aisling McCoy, Barry W Hughes, Ciaran Óg Arnold, Dorje de Burgh, George Voronov, Jamin Keogh, Megan Doherty, Miriam O’ Connor, Róisín White, and Yvette Monahan. Now, on the following pages, you will discover the works of the five Irish artists, nominated in 2020.
