HARD MOUTH SHOW & TELL
— Ella de Búrca
1 February – 29 March 2025
Opening performances: 1pm, 3pm, and 5pm on February 1st.
Join art critic Hugh Hick for an introduction to recent works by Ella de Búrca at The Cash Shop, Gort.
Hugh Hick: And so Ella, can you tell me what is HARD MOUTH SHOW & TELL?
Ella de Búrca: HARDMOUTH SHOW & TELL is a presentation of works I have been making over the last two years, all quite connected in content.
H: Are they paintings?
E: Yes, paintings but also sculptures and sound pieces.
H: And in what way are they connected?
E: Well, I suppose you could say they are all about the voice–
H:–The voice?
E: Yes, the female voice.
H: Isn’t that a bit vague?
E: Well there is more than could be said but….
H: …but you prefer to leave that open to interpretation?
E: Well, the viewer is free to see what they want to see, but the work also needs to speak for itself.
H: There’s nothing you can really do if they see something else, is there?
E: Em… No, there’s no wrong way to look at a work of art.
H: So if I was to see something completely unrelated to your intention, you’d be okay with that?
E: The act of looking at a work of art and having the time to think about it is not a pleasure gifted to everyone. If you looked at my work and really thought about it, I’d be okay with that.
H: There’s a school of thought that says you only see what you want to see.
E: Let’s see.
This event is funded by The Arts Council of Ireland. Developed with curator Debi Paul as part of a series of public research events held at Glandwr and Temple Bar Gallery + Studios Free Space in September 2024.
Ella de Búrca works through mixed media and performance and is especially interested in how we perform as 'viewer,' and the discourse surrounding active versus passive experiences. Her work is in the collection of the Irish Arts Council and Fingal County Council. She received the Irish Arts Council’s Next Generation Award in 2016, as well as receiving artist bursaries from the Irish Arts Council, Fingal County Council, andCulture Ireland. In 2021 she received the Platform 31 Award from Laois CountyCouncil. This project is supported by the Irish Arts Council's Agility Award.
Hugh Hick is an award-winning producer, playwright and director. Playwright works include The Crossroads co-produced by the CorpsEnsemble and Axis Theatre, S.A.F.E(Scene & Heard) and Suicide Tuesday(Little Shadow Theatre Company). Monologue collection The Many Deaths of Zefram Gray was performed at Electric Picnic, Carlow Arts Festival and Shakefest. Audio drama work includes Shard (BBC Radio 4), Anansi’s Web (RTE Jr), Crossing The Red Line (RTE Radio 1Extra), and Two Thieves (Newstalk). His script for the short film The Colour Saturn was nominated for Best Screenplay in the Waterford Film Festival…But in his heart he knows all of the above is just window dressing for his true passion – as an art critic.
www.elladeburca.com