My research essay is focused around the practice of socially engaged, artist-led spaces in Dublin and their relationship to cultural policy. Interviews with persons involved with artist-led spaces and the Dublin City Council (DCC) Arts Office underpinned my research. Drawing on the work of the political theorist Chantal Mouffe, I wanted to explore the role of artist-led spaces in Dublin; how they contribute to the continued existence of a healthy “arts ecology”, and what difficulties they face within the context of a cultural policy underpinned by neoliberalism.
Untitled from "Dublin in Detail" - Faolan Carey (2017) reproduced with permission.