“I want people to walk in and think, someone very gay made this.”
Mariette Feeney’s Queer Utopia exhibition has premiered in A4 Sounds on St Josephs Parade. Feeney’s exhibition is a physical manifestation of a series of interviews conducted where they asked queer people what do they want and what is important to them.
Feeney is an artist and designer currently living and working in Dublin. They moved from the UK to Ireland in 2013 to live and study, and graduated from TUD with a degree in Furniture Design. Their work is centred around the personal, small and often over looked aspects of queer life, and through their sculpture they give physical form to the idea that in order to do good work, we must all have a place to retreat.
Feeney uses Queer Utopia as a mechanism to engage with queer people. Feeney designed sculptures based on interviews they conducted with queer people surrounding the queer ideal. Post-exhibition, the sculptures will go to the people Feeney interviewed.
“Because I had that budget, I was like- this is the way to talk to queer people, make them something, and just give it to them for free,” says Feeney.
Feeney is on a paid residency with A4 Sounds. A4 Sounds offer multiple paid residencies a year. Some of their residencies specifically cater for underrepresented groups in society; asylum seekers, those currently unhoused and trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming people.
“I had a little scene of it in my mind,” prior to their residency, Feeney explained. They had an image for Queer Utopia which then became a more expansive project. Now, Feeney would consider it more than an isolated exhibition, “I want to talk to more queer people and give them more things.”
Pink is the dominating colour of Feeney’s exhibition. “It’s embracing something I used to think was frivolous, and now I’m like there’s nothing wrong with being frivolous.”
“A lot of the time we think of queer struggle, and that is a big component of our lives collectively and part of our experience, but I also wanted to dedicate some space to joy, what is important to you, what do you love about your world.”
‘Queer Utopia’ is being exhibited until May 30, you can find out more information here.
© 2021 GCN (Gay Community News). All rights reserved.
Support GCN
GCN is a free, vital resource for Ireland’s LGBTQ+ community since 1988.
GCN is a trading name of National LGBT Federation CLG, a registered charity - Charity Number: 20034580.
GCN relies on the generous support of the community and allies to sustain the crucial work that we do. Producing GCN is costly, and, in an industry which has been hugely impacted by rising costs, we need your support to help sustain and grow this vital resource.
Supporting GCN for as little as €1.99 per month will help us continue our work as Ireland’s free, independent LGBTQ+ media.
comments. Please sign in to comment.