Eternal Rebels: Changemakers Exhibition

Artist: Mary Moynihan

‘If you’re always trying to be normal, you’ll never know how amazing you can be’.

Maya Angelou, Poet and Writer

Eternal Rebels: Changemakers Exhibition is a multidisciplinary visual art exhibition by artist Mary Moynihan, featuring photography, poetry, and film. The exhibition is a visual and poetic reflection on the stories of twenty-three changemakers from the decade in Irish history commemorated by the Decade of Centenaries (1912-1923). The exhibition runs from 8 July to 31 October 2024 at The Old Barracks Heritage and Events Centre, Cahersiveen, County Kerry.

Alongside the stories of changemakers from Irish history, the artist presents a series of poetic texts with photography and a poem-film, all under the title of The Feeling Soul: Paradise Lost and Found. These are personal reflections on themes of love, courage, and the internal journey of someone experiencing loss and the possibility of finding a way through, holding onto the courage to let ourselves shine. Many of us fall on our journey through life. We fall and pick ourselves up. How do we hold on to the courage and madness to carry on and let ourselves be?

The work is a celebration of the human spirit. The storytelling, original poetry, and associated photographic images of the Irish landscape in all its forms – calm and serene, wild and wilful, alluring and physical – explore intersections between historical memory, storytelling, visibility, love, loss and courage, and the inner world of the mind and soul linked to the physicality of the body and nature. The photographs highlight the variety of life and nature, while artist Mary Moynihan’s thought-provoking storytelling and poetic text offer avenues for the mind to explore.

One of the artworks on display is ‘On the Ledge of Courage’, a poem-film by Mary Moynihan, performed by Carla Ryan. The poem-film is a reflection on love, courage, fear, and finding a way through darkness.

Speaking about ‘On the Ledge of Courage’ the artist Mary Moynihan says:

Fear and courage can exist within us at the same time, in the same way that we can have strength in our vulnerability. The physical cliff edge in the poem is inspired by Skellig Michael (Sceilg Mhichíl), a majestic island in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of the Iveragh peninsula in county Kerry, the site of an ancient medieval monastery. The cliff edge is overlooking the ocean but this ‘ledge’ is in all of us and we often have to dive into the unknown for both ourselves and others. I’ve been coming to Valentia for many years and I often refer to the island and surrounding areas as my spiritual home, a place of peace, solitude and inspiration. The Great Skellig is a steep island shooting straight up two hundred metres out of the Atlantic Ocean, standing aloof like a majestic stone palace that can be seen for miles around. I often find myself thinking about the Great Skellig in the middle of the ocean, tall, silent and rooted, whether the seas around it are calm or stormy. Life is the same, some days will be calm and others stormy, but to remember that the storms shall pass.

The Eternal Rebels: Changemakers Exhibition highlights the stories of women and artists active in the revolutionary period in Irish history as well as the stories of two women who both lived on Valentia Island situated near Cahersiveen where the exhibition is taking place. The two women are Helen Blackburn (1842 1903) who was a writer, Suffragist and Feminist Campaigner for Women’s Rights and Worker’s Rights and Maude Jane Delap (1866-1953), a pioneering Marine Biologist who had a sea anemone named after her, the ‘Edwardsia delapiae’, which she discovered in shallow sea waters on Valentia Island’s shores.

The Old Barracks is an ideal location for the Eternal Rebels: Changemakers Exhibition. The building is situated on an elevated site close to the bridge over the River Fertha in Cahersiveen. It is home to a permanent exhibition over three storeys which recounts the building’s remarkable history and that of the local region and includes the story of Daniel O’Connell (1775-1847), an Irish political leader, activist and nationalist known as the liberator. The building has views over the bay at Cahersiveen and out to Valentia island and was originally constructed between 1870 and 1875 as a police station for the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC).

Smashing Times is delighted to announce that eleven of the artworks highlighting the stories of women in history will remain in the Barracks on permanent display. The women include Hanna Sheehy Skeffington (1877-1946), a radical activist, feminist, pacifist, human rights campaigner and one of Ireland’s foremost suffragettes; Dr Kathleen Lynn (1874-1955), a Medical Doctor, politician, feminist, suffragist, Republican and socialist; and Helena Molony (1884-1967), a Republican, feminist, and labour activist.

This exhibition, presented as part of Theatre in Palm supported by Creative Europe, was originally created as part of States of Independence – A Celebration of Changemakers, presented by Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality for the 2023 annual Dublin Arts and Human Rights festival supported by The Arts Council Open Call as part of ART: 2023 a Decade of Centenaries Collaboration between The Arts Council and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media.

All in all, the Eternal Rebels: Changemaker Exhibition features:

23 Eternal Rebels storyboard prints on wooden easels showcasing 26 changemaker stories from the decade in Irish history commemorated by the Decade of Centenaries (1912-1923), with each story accompanied by a photographic artwork depicting Irish landscapes. 11 are displayed on floors one and two, and 12 on floor three.

Two photography and poetry artworks mounted on foamboard displayed on floor three

1 artwork with poem and photographic image: ‘The Ship of Belonging’ by Mary Moynihan

1 artwork with poem and photographic image – ‘Prayer’ by Féilim James

The Feeling Soul: Paradise Lost and Found: Eight photography and poetry artworks framed

Freedom: Photographic artwork and poetic text by Mary Moynihan. 60 x 42 cm

Finding My Way: Photographic artwork and poetic text by Mary Moynihan. 60 x 42 cm

Imperfections: Photographic artwork and poetic text by Mary Moynihan. 60 x 42 cm

A Broken Heart: Photographic artwork and poetic text by Mary Moynihan. 60 x 42 cm

Totality of My Soul: Poetry artwork by Mary Moynihan. 60 x 42 cm

The Feeling Soul: Photographic artwork and poetic text by Mary Moynihan. 60 x 42 cm

Dreamscape: Photographic artwork and poetic text by Mary Moynihan. 60 x 42 cm

On the Ledge of Courage: Photographic artwork and poetic text by Mary Moynihan. 60 x 42 cm

Mary Moynihan 

Mary Moynihan, MA, she/her, is an award-winning author of novels, poetry, films and plays, and a creator of art and photography. Mary has garnered much acclaim for her plays, poetry, films and novels and for creating interdisciplinary artworks combining writing, photography and painting presented in galleries and online. As a photographer and painter, Mary has a passion for nature, landscapes and people, dedicating her career to creating unique and powerful images that capture the beauty and mystery of the incredible Irish landscape and its inhabitants. Nature and the sea, stars and sky alongside stories of bravery, passion, desire and adventure are a driving force behind Mary’s career creating some of the finest writings, photography and paintings on what it is to be human and a search for love and meaning-making in life. Mary has a focus on using historical memory in her artistic practice as inspiration for the creation of original artworks, remembering stories of ordinary yet powerful women and men from history and today who stood up for the rights of others.