Awards

Studio Award for an Artist with a Disability

In partnership with Arts and Disability Ireland (ADI)

Ruth le Gear (June - Oct 2011) and Hugh O'Donnell (Nov 2011 - May 2012) are the recipients of the studio award for an artist with a disability for 2011-12.

The aim of this award is to support the professional career development of disabled visual artists whose practice is innovative and ambitious. We are also looking for an artist who is open to engaging in a dialogue around their practice during their residency. The award consists of:

  • A rent free live and work studio in Dublin’s city centre for up to 6 months. Heat, light, parking, night-time security included.
  • Artist Bursary of €3,000
  • An ‘Access Grant’ of up to €1,000.
  • Full use of Fire Station digital resource area with high end digital and editing equipment, IT tech support, internet, sculptural workshop facilities and administration support.

Mentoring Programme

Swedish artist Anna Berndtson was selected for the Fire Station/ADI Studio award for an artist with a disability in 2010. A Mentoring Programme was initiated as part of this award and was funded by the Arts Council. During her ten month residency in Dublin, Anna Berndtson mentored Dublin based artist Amanda Elena Conrad. Both artists documented this mentoring process through images, video and text which they made into a webpage. This webpage which can be downloaded on: http://www.berndtson-art.net/a+a.html

Opportunity:

Call for applications from visual artists with a disability for the Fire Station Artists’ Studios and Arts & Disability Ireland (ADI) Mentoring Programme 2011.

This programme gives visual artists with a disability based in Ireland an opportunity to engage in a mentoring programme (as mentee or co mentor), with 2011 Studio award recipient Ruth le Gear from June – Oct 2011.  Mentoring offers professionally focused development for artists. It opens the potential for knowledge, sharing and gives artists the opportunity to observe and formally review aspects of their own practice in action.

A budget of €500 will be awarded towards expenses of the selected artist.

Closing date for applications: Friday 20thMay 2011

To apply please send:

  • A letter expressing your interest
  • Explain why you think you would benefit from this mentoring programme and/ or how you might contribute to it (max 500 words)
  • CV
  • Documentation of work
  • Photos/ jpegs 6-8 images, DVD (max 5 mins)

Please include list with images including title, year, context, materials etc. Applications can be sent to: artadmin[a]firestation.ie or posted to Fire Station Artists' Studios, 9-11 Lower Buckingham St, Dublin 1. 

Working primarily though video, sound, photography and installation, Ruth Le Gear’s practice exists in the spaces between the perceptible and the intangible as well as ephemeral. Her work is exploratory, and  seeks out new territories, follows trails and maps. Each place and the spaces in between offer the artist new possibilities, which she experiments with through materials in a continual exchange with her environment. For further information on Le Gear go to: www.ruthlegear.com

Click here for further information and guidelines on mentoring (word doc)

Award Recipients

Studio award recipients of an artist with a disability
Anna Berndtson (2010)
Noëmi Lakmaier (2008-09)