Requiem for Raymo by queer artist presents a fictional scenario of obsession transmuting from hate to love/lust. Hearne’s object of desire is the Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke, an American prelate and a strident opponent of any relaxation of Church attitudes towards gay people. Burke is also outspoken on the rights of divorced people in the church and opined that Catholic politicians supporting women’s right to abortion should be denied the Eucharist.
Hearne weaves a tale of infatuation by the artist of the figure of Burke. He creates a fantasy scenario where Burke and himself live together as a couple in perfect harmony. But with the fictionalised death of Burke, Hearne’s love becomes unrequited and results in a devastating grief.
Hearne creates his melodrama through a complex installation that includes large-scale photographic works with sculptural elements, bespoke wallpaper, video and a weekly durational performance that will take place every Friday in the gallery.
The exhibition runs until January 29th 2023.
BIO
Austin Hearne is an artist from Dublin, living in Co. Wexford. He holds a MFA from NCAD (2016). In 2021 he collaborated on a music project Satin Shadow with film maker and music producer Glenn McQuaid with a live stream performance in The Complex as part of Tanad Aaron and Mark Swords exhibition Portico. They have subsequently released 3 albums. His film work Whispers recently won Best Irish Short at the Gaze film festival.
Austin has recently had solo shows in Gorey School of Art and The Complex and group shows with WEARTFETISHISTS, PhotoIreland Festival and Speech Sounds at Visual Carlow. Austin’s work is held in private collections in the USA, Europe and the OPW collection.
Lily Cahill is a visual artist, writer and facilitator. She is the winner of the Visual Artists
Ireland/Dublin City Council Art Writing Award 2019. She has written or performed her work for the The Lab Gallery, Visual Artists’ News Sheet, CIRCA, Art and Research Collaboration (ARC) at Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design & Technology, Paper Visual Art, the School of Visual Culture at NCAD and Foaming at the Mouth, and for various artist pamphlets and publications. Lily has facilitated writing projects for young people with Temple Bar Gallery + Studios, The RHA, The LAB Gallery, Dublin and MoLI – Museum of Literature Ireland, and has been a co-editor of Critical Bastards Magazine, funded by the Arts Council of Ireland, since 2014.
Image: Austin Hearne, Cardinal. Courtesy of the artist.
