Connolly & Cleary: Winners of The AIB Prize 2009
Wednesday 3 June 2009
Anne Cleary / Denis Connolly
On Wednesday 3rd June, AIB’s Group Chief Executive, Eugene Sheehy, announced that Anne Cleary and Denis Connolly were the recipients of the AIB Prize for 2009. This coveted award identifies emerging Irish artists of exceptional talent.
Born in Ireland (Cleary in Tullamore and Connolly in Dun Laoghaire), this collaborative team studied architecture in Dublin before moving to Paris in the early '90s where they continue to live and work. Nominated by the Limerick City Gallery of Art, their work explores new technologies in an inventive way, often focusing on audience engagement with contemporary art practice, with outreach and community involvement becoming central to their practice. Their art takes many forms, ranging from interactive video installation to narrative documentary, but it consistently shows a real commitment to creating a bridge between art and our daily existence.
Commenting on the AIB Prize, Mary Cloake, Director of the Arts Council said: “The arts and creative thinking are central to Ireland’s economic recovery, so now, more than ever, artists need corporate encouragement and support. The AIB Prize has given a valuable boost to its winners over the past decade but in these difficult times this award is particularly important.”
Cleary & Connolly win a prize of €20,000 to assist in the publication of a catalogue and to facilitate the production of new work for an exhibition in the Limerick City Gallery of Art. Their proposal is to create entirely new video pieces that break down the divisions between the artist, the museum and the public, focusing on the young people of Limerick.
The three runners-up, who each received an award of €1,500, and the galleries who nominated them, are:
Sinead Ni Mhaonaigh, Sligo Art Gallery, Sligo
Sonia Shiel, Temple Bar Gallery and Studios, Dublin
Louise Manifold, Galway Arts Centre, Galway
