IN LIVING MEMORY, 26/04/19 – 29/09/19. Emo Court, Emo, County Laois, Ireland

May 20 2019

PALM HOUSE  Photographs , Silver Gelatin prints, 36 x 36cm
In Living Memory | An Exhibition of Contemporary Still Life

Oliver Sears Gallery at Emo Court

In association with the Office of Public Works

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Emo Court being bequeathed to the nation, Oliver Sears Gallery is delighted to present an exhibition of contemporary Still Life to mark the inaugural opening of the first floor Gallery Rooms of the house.

This newly conserved grand Georgian space will host a collection of some 60 contemporary works by, among others, Peter Blake, Michael Craig-Martin, David Hockney, Hughie O’Donoghue,  Camille Souter, Amelia Stein and Sasha Sykes.

In Living Memory brings a selection of artists and artworks, both national and international, to the midlands for visitors to engage with during the summer months.

Emo Court was once home to a spectacular art collection, assembled over generations by the Dawson-Damer family, Earls of Portarlington. Old Master paintings including works by Van Dyck, Rubens, Breughel, Giorgione and Guido Reni and later works by Angelica Kauffman and Canaletto all hung in the Picture Gallery and throughout the House. When Major Cholmeley Harrison acquired Emo Court in 1969, he furnished the house with his art collection. These artworks were later acquired by the OPW when the house was bequeathed to the nation.

It is against this background and inspired by this history that Oliver Sears Gallery, in association with the OPW, presents the inaugural exhibition of contemporary Still Life artworks at the newly conserved Gallery Rooms at Emo Court.

A catalogue will accompany the exhibition.

In Living Memory runs until 29 September 2019