DEEP TIME | Andrew Carroll, Tina Whelan, Ciara Rodgers & Anna Barden

Dates: 2nd June – 7 July 2024

Opening Event: 4 – 6pm, Sunday 2nd June

Please RSVP to not only join us at the opening but to secure your place on the ferry, as space is limited. Ferry departs from Cobh at 4pm and returns at 6pm. Book Ferry here.

Location: Punishment Block, Spike Island, as part Cork Harbour Festival 2024

Artists Led Tour: 9.30am, Wednesday 26th June

Backwater Artists Group will present the work of four members Ciara Rodgers, Andrew Carroll, Anna Barden, Tina Whelan, as part of the Cork Harbour Festival 2024. The exhibition will explore maritime themes, the history of the Punishment Block and Fort Mitchell at Spike Island and the fort’s unique position in Cork Harbour through the mediums of drawing, performance, print and video. The opening event will include a performance by artist Ciara Rodgers, which will take the form of performative drawing actions engaging with the historical, physical and sensorial qualities of the building. The resultant drawings will be exhibited amongst the two spaces.

Dorota Gubbins of Spike Island comments “At Spike Island, we are delighted to uphold our collaboration with Backwater Studio and contribute to this year’s involvement in the Cork Harbour Festival, celebrating Cork’s unique maritime heritage.”

Backwater Artists Group is an artist-led organisation, located on Wandesford Quay, in the heart of Cork City. Our mission is to support and advocate for visual artists, allowing them to thrive, to foster a deep appreciation and enthusiasm for the visual arts within the community and to keep sites of production at the heart of Cork city. We are a key fixture in Cork’s cultural landscape and we sustain a thriving visual arts community. We currently have 90+ artists in our various memberships. Since our inception in 1990, we have supported the practices of over 500 artists, including 150+ early career artists.

Find more information about the artists on their profiles. Follow the links below. Andrew Carroll, Tina Whelan, Ciara Rodgers & Anna Barden

Cork Harbour Festival: 1 – 10 June 2024

Cork Harbour Festival is the largest annual event in Cork Harbour offering a week-long celebration of Ireland’s maritime culture. The festival features over 80 different events – taking place in Cork City as well as in 15 harbour towns and villages.

Founded in 2015, the festival celebrates Cork Harbour as a natural and cultural resource, with the communities and their stories at the heart of it. Throughout festival week there is a huge variety of events to dive into, from water activities to guided walks, open days to open sails, seafood tasters to seaweed foraging and so much more. Cork Harbour Festival attracts some 25,000 visitors from across Ireland and beyond.

Spike Island venues feature exclusive art spaces housed within historic heritage buildings, boasting a storied history of nearly two centuries. Led by Spike Island’s curator, Dorota Gubbins, our focus on heritage and the arts drives the coordination of diverse events. Annually, Spike Island welcomes approximately 70,000 visitors from Ireland and around the globe.

Participating Artists: 

Andrew Carroll, Tina Whelan, Ciara Rodgers & Anna Barden