An exhibition of new works and projects by Lorraine Elder, Breege Fahy, Laura Flood, Madeleine Hadd, Aisling McConville, Sorcha McNamara, Padraig Sinnott and Emer Wang.

The title Two Steps, Twice conjures a sense of movement or progression. But it also implies looking back and reflection. Steps describe a familiar way of moving in space and time, most obviously in the form of walking. But steps can take other forms in artistic processes. An artist rarely just progresses forward, continuously creating in a constant stream. Every now and then they must take a step backwards to retrace their own artistic pathway, revisit old projects, theories, or methodologies to step forward with their current project. Sometimes, they even step sideways, pivoting in a totally different direction from that envisioned at the start of a project, to explore a new and exciting direction. The artworks in Two Steps, Twice are a reminder that thought-provoking work doesn’t always happen on a linear path, it is a combination of forward, reflective and flexible stepping.

The LAB gallery can be a place from which to view everyday reality differently, by finding new routes and pathways inwards, or by stepping outwards towards the street, the urban world beyond, and even the wider realm of the earth itself. A growing planetary consciousness has inspired many individuals to take steps towards sustainability and artists are no exception. Materials and objects undergo many stages or steps in their lifetime, through processes of construction, manipulation, production and display. Artists often seek out new uses for discarded objects or deliberately choose materials that may, in time, degrade and return to the earth. These motivations are evident throughout Two Steps, Twice, in artworks that activate the walls, floor, ceiling, and windows of the LAB Gallery. This exhibition is an invitation to step into an active process and to join these artists in their ongoing choreography of experimentation, invention and reflection.

Exhibition text by ARC-LAB Gallery Curatorial Scholar Clara McSweeney and Maeve Connolly

 
ARC and the LAB 

The Masters in Art and Research Collaboration (ARC) is a full time practical taught masters programme, offered by Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design & Technology. The core  lecturing team consists of David Beattie, Maeve Connolly, Sinead Hogan and Maria McKinney. ARC is open to artists, critics, curators and those engaging with art in other roles. ARC works in collaboration with Dublin City Arts Office and the LAB Gallery on numerous projects, and in 2019 the LAB Gallery and IADT launched the ARC-LAB Gallery Curatorial Scholarship, a unique initiative in curatorial education at postgraduate level developed with Sheena Barrett during her tenure as curator of the LAB Gallery.