The Kilkenny County Council Arts Office is delighted to announce that they have recently appointed Sinéad Keogh as the fourth curator to avail of the Emerging Curator Development Programme. This programme will enable Sinéad to gain direct experience in the field of curating exhibitions with Kilkenny County Council Arts Office. Three exhibitions or projects in total will be organised between June and December this year, providing Sinead with the platform to further develop their career, expand their artistic and creative networks and avail of a mentoring programme with Curator Kate Strain.
In a statement Keogh has stated “I am very humbled to have received this award and greatly look forward to being mentored by Kate Strain and work with Mary Butler and the Arts Office as a whole to achieve the goals of my proposed programming.”
This programme will also enhance the cultural vibrancy of Kilkenny by showcasing the works of local and national artists. An outreach programme will complement the programme, seeking to involve communities in Kilkenny and diversifying audiences and engagement.
Sinéad is a multimedia performance installation Artist and Curator with an MFA from NCAD (National College of Art and Design) in Dublin. Keogh is also the Founder, Director and Curator of Soul Noir: Festival of the Dark Arts, a Dublin based festival for Gothic and alternative arts (2017 – present). In Keogh’s curatorial practice, the aim is to enlighten and empower audiences and awaken them to countercultural, underground and alternative voices that are not often heard in the mainstream arts scene. The engagement with artists is represented in a genuine, authentic manner while balancing a larger system of expanded programming and community engagement as means of breaking down barriers with larger audiences. A strong vibration of feminism is also present in this curatorial practice and Sinéad is a vocal ally for audiences and creatives who are blind and visually impaired. Keogh has worked with artists ranging from young artists such as Jaime Lalor to cult experimental film artist Vivienne Dick to iconic feminist performance artist Pauline Cummins.
Mary Butler, Arts Officer says ‘we are delighted to welcome Sinéad to work with us in 2022 and to support this phase of their career. We are looking forward to working with them and the various artists that will exhibit with us this year. We welcome the opportunity to meet the new audiences and participants throughout their programming.
To keep up to date with what Sinéad has in store and other news from the Arts Office please join us on the Arts Office Facebook page @kilkennyartsoffice and Instagram @kilkennyartsoffice and @kccartsofficeemergingcurator
This programme is funded by Kilkenny County Council and the Arts Council of Ireland.
