Array Collective
Lay of the Land
Friday 14th April-Saturday 27th May, 10am-4pm
Town Hall Theatre Gallery Space
Array Collective
Lay of the Land
The Lay of the Land is a gallery exhibition by Turner prize winners Array Collective with members Laura O’Connor, Thomas Wells and invited artists Emma Brennan, Marta Dyczkowska, Méabh Meir and Sally O’Dowd.
Multiple theories surround the purpose of The Black Pig’s Dyke. Some regard it as an example of Ulster always being divided, others see it as a barricade for enclosing animals, or even as a display of power. In folklore the dyke was torn up by a raging headmaster and piled by a mythological worm. Just like these interchangeable stories of the dyke, borders too interchange and shift in meaning depending on who tells the story.
The Black Pig’s Dyke was one of the themes explored in Array Collective’s 2021 Turner Prize winning show The Druthaib’s Ball. Utilising a variety of approaches such as protests, rallies, public talks, exhibitions and social media the collective’s work focuses on human rights and identity. The group uses themes from Irish folklore and mythology to reimagine identity, where binaries are eroded leading to fluid and nuanced characters.
A day of Performance Art at the Cavan Arts Festival at Con Smith Park will present each artist's response to the folklore surrounding The Black Pig's Dyke. Drawing on identity politics, queer histories and the body as a border, the artists in The Lay of the Land take multiple approaches to responding to the ancient earthwork.
Array Collective are the first Northern Irish artists to win the prestigious Turner Prize.
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