From 1912-1948, art was a competitive element of the Olympic Games with three Irish Art Olympians winning medals for Ireland (Jack B Yeats, Letitia Marion Hamilton, and Oliver St John Gogarty). Ireland entered the Olympics in 1924 a year and half after the Free State had been declared. Jack B Yeats’ Silver medal for ‘The Liffey Swim’ (1923) painting, and Oliver St John Gogarty’s Bronze for his ‘Ode to the Tailteann Games’ were the first Olympic Medals won for Ireland as a free nation.
But what does it mean to compete as an artist? What does it mean to represent your nation alongside, and against, others? Who decides the difference between gold, silver and bronze levels of creativity – and does it matter?
Funded by Creative Ireland and Waterford Arts, with support from the Olympic Federation of Ireland and Arts Council Ireland, WGOA seeks to exhibit new and recent artworks as part of this group exhibition on the themes of Nationality, Representation, and Art as Competition.
Ten artworks will be selected to be included within the display for the duration of the exhibition, with 3 being awarded a further Gold, Silver and Bronze award, as decided by our visitors to the gallery.
Each selected artist will receive an exhibiting fee of £250. Artist selected to receive an award will receive an additional €300 for ‘Bronze, €400 for ‘Silver’, and €500 for ‘Gold’.
In accordance with the original participating criteria for Olympic artists, works must be inspired by or reference Olympic ideals such as competition, excellence, unity, representing your nation etc. – though do not need to directly include sport as a subject matter.
Works can be submitted from any of the following categories which featured in the early modern Olympic Games.
- Painting and Drawing
- Music
- Literature
- Sculpture
- Architecture
Who can apply:
WGOA are looking for as broad a range of artists and applications as possible. Proposals could be figurative and literal, or action paintings, sculptural labours, triumphant compositions, odes to application rejections, and more…
We welcome high quality applications from all ages, abilities though note that works must be from artists living and working in Ireland.
Applications can be from individuals, though groups or new collaborations can apply.
Requirements:
- Works must abide by the categories and themes as mentioned above
- All works must be available for the duration of the exhibition (July 26 – Nov 26, 2024)
- Works must be the original work of the creator(s), and not violate any contractual, copyright law or permissions – though do not have to be newly made specifically for this project
- Artists must be living and working in Ireland, though applications from all nationalities welcome
- Artists must be able to deliver and collect their work from the Waterford Gallery of Art.
- All rights and permissions remain with the artist
Benefits:
- Successful artists will receive €250 per selected proposal
- Artists may receive an additional €300 (bronze), €400 (silver), or €500 (gold)award as selected by visitors to WGOA
- A nominal 5% commission fee from WGOA if work sells as part of this exhibition – though works must remain on display for the duration of the show
- Exhibited and promoted together as part of the gallery’s programme and exhibition
- All works and copyright remain vested with the artist
- Support from the Waterford Arts and Gallery team
- A chance to develop and present new (potentially more conceptual or experimental work) to a wider audience via the gallery
Through this commission process WGOA also intends to achieve broader aims of:
- Showing and interpreting artistic creativity in new and exciting ways
- Reaching new, and broader audiences
- Extending the cultural offering for each of the partner organisations
- Promoting a diverse and varied point of view in response to ‘traditional’ gallery items
- Continuing to challenge the boundaries of commissioning within the arts by embracing and questioning both historic and contemporary selection criteria.
Dates:
Open Call Live: 7th June 2024 – 1st July 2024
Submissions Entry Deadline: 11:59am 1st July 2024
Selected Artists Notified: 5th July 2024
Artworks delivered to WGOA by 7pm, 18th July 2024
How to Apply
Applications can be written, or provided as a video or audio if required. If these formats are not accessible to you, please do let us know by emailing: WaterfordGallery@waterfordcouncil.ie
Applications can propose complete/existing works, or just an indication of the approach you intend to take if selected.
Before applying, we strongly recommend visiting our gallery where possible and familiarising yourself with the stories and artworks related to the Olympic Art Competitions .
Please include the following in your application:
1. An expression of interest which includes:
- Contact details including any relevant website or social media accounts
- Artist statement or bio (approx. 1 side A4)
- Approx. 4 examples of any recent, related work. This may be in the format of supporting attachments or links with brief descriptions.
2. Artist’s proposal which details how the artwork would meet the brief of this open-call (approx. 1 side of A4 and 4 accompanying images or links in support of the proposed work). Please note any display requirements to exhibit this work within a gallery context.
3. Draft schedule/delivery date.
Written applications should be no larger than 10MB. Video or audio application should be no longer than 10 minutes and transferred via WeTransfer.
All proposals are to be sent to: WaterfordGallery@waterfordcouncil.ie
Please use as the following as the title of your email submission:
OPEN CALL PROPOSAL IRISH ART OLYMPIANS
Works will be selected by representatives from the gallery, arts, and music community. Due to the nature of this commission and the amount of responses received, we will not be able to guarantee detailed feedback to all applicants.
About the exhibition, Muscles and Mind: Irish Art Olympians
The revival of the modern Olympic Games by Pierre De Coubertin embodied the ideal of a marriage between ‘Art and Sport, Muscles and Mind’. This exhibition features artists from the Waterford Art Collection who competed for Ireland in the Olympic Games from 1924-48 including: Jack B. Yeats, Letitia Hamilton, Séan Keating, Mainie Jellett, Fr. Jack P. Hanlon, Sir John Lavery, Hilda Roberts, Harry Kernoff and more.
The exhibition will also include ten selected works by contemporary ‘Irish Art Olympians’ and the work of SETU 2024 Graduate Award Commission winner, Sammy Kane.
About the Waterford Gallery of Art
The Waterford Collection of Art, formerly known as ‘The Waterford Municipal Art Collection’ is acknowledged as one of the oldest and best municipal collections of art in Ireland.
Originally founded as the Waterford Art Museum in 1939, the collection has grown considerably since and now comprises over 500 works of art including works by: Paul Henry, Jack B. Yeats, Mainie Jellett, Louis Le Brocquy, Letitia Hamilton, Dermod O’Brien, Evie Hone, Mary Swanzy, Charles Lamb, Hilda Roberts, Seán Keating, and George Russell (a.k.a. AE), as well as contemporary acquisitions of work by James Hanely, Michael Wann, Donald Teskey, Una Sealy, Alice Maher and more.
The collection is now housed at the Waterford Gallery of Art, 31-32 O’Connell Street, in a former bank building built in 1845. The building was designed by the Waterford born architect Thomas Jackson (1807 – 1890).
Gallery Times
The gallery is open to the public Wednesday -Saturday, 10am-5pm.
Free for all visitors.
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