Leisure Seekers  is a multi-media installation emerging from Harold Offeh’s research visits to Bray where he has explored the town’s history as holiday destination.

Working with local stories, fables, communities, families and sea swimmers, Offeh explores aspects of this rich history of Bray as a place for fun and leisure through the ages.

Offeh has embraced his role as a stranger and visitor, delving into Bray’s history and politics of leisure – the title of the installation speaks to the promise of pleasure and desire for fun offered by the traditional ‘fine day out’. Through narratives and historical references, the work speaks to the complexity of who has access to leisure, and why.

The Leisure Seekers opening event will take place on Culture Night 2024, Friday 20 September. More details to follow.

Commissioned as part of Mermaid Arts Centre’s 2024 LEISURE visual art programme, a series of new works exploring sites of leisure, rest, care and fun, drawing on Bray town’s history as a ‘fine day out’ and holiday destination.