Changing Tracks

CHANGING TRACKS LAUNCHES IN MAYO ON JULY 12^th

Mayo County Council is delighted to announce the official launch of CHANGING TRACKS at The Mill Times Hotel, Westport at 1pm on Saturday 12^th July 2014. 

Senator Fiach Mac Conghail, Director of the Abbey Theatre will officially launch CHANGING TRACKS, an outdoor temporary public art project taking place this summer in County Mayo, Northamptonshire and Catalonia as part of the European Union’s Culture Programme 2007 to 2013.

The launch will be followed by a brief walking tour of the artworks created in Westport and a bus tour to a number of the artworks further along the Greenway.  The bus will leave Westport at approximately 2.30pm and will return no later than 6.00pm. 

Spaces on the bus are free but must be booked in advance as there is limited capacity.  Booking through Mayo Arts Office Public Art Co-ordinator, Gaynor Seville 094-9047561 | gseville@mayococo.ie.  This is a free event and all are welcome to attend. 

Artists Aideen Barry (Ireland), Noah Rose ( UK) and Xevi Bayona (Catalonia)  have been busy working on their project over the last number of months, the culmination of which explores the shared economic and cultural heritage themes in relation to former railways in the Mayo, Northamptonshire & Catalonia. They have each created temporary art works to be situated on or adjacent to disused railway lines which are now all used as walking or cycle paths.

One of the main manifestations of Aideen Barry’s project will be a limited edition interactive publication which will be made available at specially selected locations along the Greenway. The publication draws inspiration from a 19th Century publication ”Hints for Lady Travelers” by Lillias Campbell Davidson which offers both useful and (now) ridiculous advice for the independent female traveler. Girls from the Sacred Heart School in Westport have worked with Aideen to create animations that will be accessed via QR codes available in the publication.

Aideen will also create amazing installations inside the old Water Tower at Mulranny and in a little folly building behind the old convent in Westport.  The inside of the buildings will be transformed to give a magical experience to people passing by on the Greenway.

Noah Rose’s artwork is a ‘Museum of Interconnected Events’.  The ‘museums’ will be sculptural outdoor cabinets, clad in unusual materials sourced from the local environment.  The ’event cabinets’ will contain a variety of artifacts, that may include salvaged objects found locally, archival photographs or other documents relating to the impact of the railways on their surroundings, local legends or cultural traditions.  Noah has completed a large body of research in the three regions finding curious links between the countries that will be illustrated in the collections.

The Catalan artist and architect Xevi Bayona completed the first spectacular installation for Changing Tracks in Catalonia in May.  He is creating very different unique artworks for each country, working with existing structures, such as the Viaduct in Newport where he will create a large scale temporary sculpture. 

A seminar programme aimed at artists and cultural professionals is then planned for 25 and 26^th September. The seminars will focus on the implementation and success of the project from the artists and project manager’s perspectives, with additional invited guest speakers, and will be free to attend.  GMIT will host the seminar and there will be a tour of the artworks for those that missed the launch event.

For more information about CHANGING TRACKS programme and events please go to www.changingtracks.eu .