MART « Matthew Nevin

MART GALLERY & STUDIOS DUBLIN

I am Co Director and Curator of the Visual Arts Organisation MART working in a curatorial partnership with Ciara Scanlan. As Co Director of MART, I oversee the running of the organisation, this includes {with help from a mighty Team} managing the large scale of art studios, a year long programme of curated exhibitions in The MART Gallery, our international exhibition programme and art fairs.

MART Gallery & Studios is an artist-led arts organisation based in Dublin founded in 2007. Our mission is to be a leading advocate for the arts by providing sustainable creative art studios and to promote contemporary visual art through an engaging curatorial programme, to local and international audiences.

Gallery & Curation

MART Directors Ciara Scanlan & Matthew Nevin have curated and supported hundreds of artists through previous exhibitions, events, festivals and art fairs across Ireland, UK, Europe, USA & Japan. In 2013 the pair transformed the old Rathmines Fire Station into two galleries as a new home for contemporary art in Ireland. MART supports artists working across all disciplines, while providing an emphasis to those working in sculpture, video, new media, installation and live art making practices, who break new ground, who test and stretch the material and immaterial, and who challenge conventions of ‘the norm’.

MART has recently launched a sister organisation CIACLA – The Contemporary Irish Arts Center in Los Angeles, which promotes Irish art to an American audience alongside local artists through a multidisciplinary arts programme in collaboration with local and international cultural partnerships.

Studios

MART is the largest supplier of artist studios and sustainable workspace for the creative community in Dublin. We support on average over 125 members in seven studio buildings! We do this by working with local landlords and authorities to refurbish spaces that can facilitate artists’ studios and workspaces for creatives. Through a range of studio spaces we cater to emerging and established practitioners working in all forms of creativity, who in turn provide a strong cultural and economic impact on the local and national creative economy.

At MART we provide opportunities, work with local communities, attract and create jobs and improve localities through our main objectives and core ethos:

Ethos

A leading arts Advocate providing support and creative platforms for the arts.
Supporting and promoting the wellbeing of our artists, staff and audience.
Supplying sustainable, affordable and safe studios.
Ensuring our activities improve the Creative Economy and cultural capital of our localities.
Strong Social Responsibility with activities leading to positive social and environmental outcomes.
Continued investment and support to Members through activities and quality workspace.

Objectives

Cultural Advocacy: To advocate for the arts and visual culture, promoting inspiration, education and freedom of expression. We develop creative platforms to support and challenge artists by dedicating all of our activities to supporting creativity that gives a voice to the arts.
Community Building: To refurbish vacant buildings, to provide space to create artistic communities who collaborate and engage with each other and their locality.
Sustainability: To operate as a self supporting organisation and provide a safe studio environment allowing artists to concentrate on their work and sustain their practice in a dedicated space, free from worry.
Curation: To practice facilitative and collaborative methods of curation and art production, led by and for the artist and their practice. We seek to create opportunities in which practitioners are encouraged to take risks and move beyond traditional models of exhibition and art-making.
Platforms: To develop creative platforms to support and challenge artists as a means of promoting cultural leadership.
Public Engagement: To provide opportunities for artists through local and international exhibitions. Engaging with a diverse range of audiences through in person events and online.
Partnerships: MART works with creative partners, civic bodies, political representatives, public funding bodies, local and national businesses, national and international cultural bodies and institutions.

Reach & Platforms

Check out MART’s latest Publications here, our Press here and follow us on our social media Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube & Linkedin for all the latest updates.

In the past MART has run successful platforms for the showcase of contemporary art through our Hired Gallery Programme, Residency Space, Online Gallery, Project Space, and MART Experiments.

MART’s programming is kindly supported by the Arts Council of Ireland, Dublin City Arts Office, Culture Ireland and Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade.

Visit www.mart.ie