
Rachel Macmanus
Biography
Rachel Macmanus is a visual artist based in Co Clare, Ireland. Rachel works through drawing and performance. Her drawing takes the form of a community based collaborative practice which allows an ongoing exploration into the cultural and social nuances of her surroundings. Her performance practice employs endurance based tasks and repetitive action as a way to experience how it feels to be present in a space.
Rachel holds a Masters in Fine Art, Open College of the Arts (UCA) 2019 and a BA in Visual Communications, National College of Art and Design 1997
She has exhibited and performed nationally and internationally including at 126 Artist Run Gallery (Galway), glór (Co Clare), Ps2 Studios (Belfast), Revision Festival (Belfast), FIX21 Catalyst Arts (Belfast), Die Kunstschaffenden Gallery, (Linz, Austria) and Musikhuset, (Gävle, Sweden)
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Recent projects include Ogham, a residency with Catalyst Arts, Belfast, (March 2022) Eggs & Butter, glór, (Nov 2021 - Jan 2022) and Behind Closed Doors- Hidden Truths (Clare Haven Services, Ennis, Oct 2021 – Jan 2022). As a 2021 recipient of the Arts Council Agility Award the Arts Council, Rachel is now developing a triptych of site specific durational performance art works.
Website: www.rachelmacmanusart.com
Blog: https://anmucdubh.wordpress.com/
Insta: https://www.instagram.com/rackmac/
Education
Masters in Fine Art, Open College of the Arts (UCA) 2019
BA in Visual Communications, National College of Art and Design 1997
Work
March 12 – 02 April Observational Drawing as a Visual Language
Online 3 Part drawing workshop for DLR Lexicon
March 26 Pack/Unpack
Durational Performance for Second Collective as part of Imagine Belfast
Vault Art Studios
4 - 48 Tower Street
Belfast, UK
March 16 - May 17 On the 35th of May, one has to be prepared for anything
Group Show
glór,
Co Clare, Ireland
Feb 22 - 31 March Ogham
3 Artist Residency and Show
Catalyst Arts,
Belfast, UK
February 12 2022 Nobody Home (Live Performance)
Ad Spatium
Musikhuset, Gävle
Sweden
November 28. Re-Vision Performing Arts Festival
Flax Project Studios
Belfast, UK
November 25 to date Project Co - Manager
Hidden Truths- Behind Closed Doors
Multi Media Installation
Clare Haven Services
Abbey Lodge
Co Clare
November 05- Jan 08. Eggs & Butter
3 Artist Show
glór, Co Clare, Ireland
October 16 FIX21 Performance Art Festival
Catalyst Arts
Belfast, UK
July Workshop Co facilitator
Limerick Youth Services
Burren Outdoor Education Centre
BallyVaughan, Co Clare
March 7 to June Creative Circles Co-facilitator
Online meeting platform for Co Clare based creatives
Glór, Ennis
March to June 30th Artist In Schools Scheme
Knockanean National School and St Joseph’s Hospital, Ennis, Co Clare
Facilitated by Clare Arts Office
April 23 - May 31 Reveal
Group Show, curated and hosted by THIS_ Gallery
March 02-20 2021 Line of Thought , PS² Belfast
2 Artist drawing show (online due to restrictions)
https://www.pssquared.org/projects/line-of-thought
January 15 2021 R-A-W Exhibition, curated and hosted by BBeyondLive
Group Show, (Online)
December 1 2020 Vanishing
Group Show, curated and hosted by THIS_ Gallery
October 15 - 25 2020 Business as Usual
Group Show, Making Space Gallery, Bow Street Mall, Lisburn, NI
October 6 - 28 2020. In Dialogue With The Unknown.
Group show, Die Kunstschaffenden Gallery, Linz, Austria
September 26 2020. Revision Festival, Belfast
Working Through Feelings. Durational live performance
Sep 01 - Oct 3 2020 Lockdown Through A young Lens.
Clare Kids Art Competition curated by Rachel Macmanus
glór, Co Clare, Ireland.
July/August 2020 Digital Graffitti Collaborative Project
Online collaborative project with 25 artists
March - May 2020 Clare Kids Art Competition
Art Competition for Primary School age children in Co Clare schools
Responsible for creation to completion of project.
March/April/June 2020 I Need To Be Ready Performance series
Ballybeg Woods, Burren National Park, Our Ladys Hospital, Ennis.
January 30 2020 Performance with Evil Collective, Plug'd, Cork
January 10 - 24 2020 Mind Breath Beat Group Show, 126 Artist Run Gallery, Galway, Co Galway
December 19 2019 Pack, Unpack. Durational Public Performance. Shannon Airport, Co Clare
November 01 2019 First Friday Artists talk. glór, Ennis, Co Clare, Ireland
October 05 2019 Night Crawl. Durational Public Performance, Ennis, Co Clare
28/29 September 2019 FIX19, members Film Program. Catalyst Arts, Belfast. 3 works screened
September 26 2019 Performance with Evil Collective for Evil IV, Pharmacia Bar, Limerick
September 20 2019 Culture Night screening of two works ‘Pushing Through’, ‘Tyre Flip- Ode to Sisyphus’ glór, Ennis, Co Clare,
June 2019 The Circle of Life
Collaborative Multimedia Project with Eleanor Feeley
glór, Co Clare, Ireland.
June 2019 Duodecimal. Open College of the Arts Masters Degree Show
The Civic, Barnsley, UK
May – November 2019 Living Portraits
Portrait Collection in association with Bealtaine 2019
glór, Ennis, Co Clare, Ireland.
November 2018 St Josephs Portraiture Project
Portrait Collection of Hospital Residents.
On permanent display in St Josephs Hospital, Ennis, Co Clare, Ireland.
June - October 2018 Poor Clare’s Portrait Project
Drawn portraits of the sisters of The Poor Clare’s Monastery
Ennis Friary, Ennis, Co Clare, Ireland
May 2017 No Ordinary People
Portraits of residents of Drumbiggle Nursing Home, Ennis
October 2017 Culturlann Sweeney, Kilkee Co Clare, Ireland
July 2017 Scarriff Library, Co Clare, Ireland
May 2017 Clare Museum, Ennis, Co Clare, Ireland
Media:
Rachel Botha interview for Ogham Residency, Catalyst Arts
https://www.catalystarts.org.uk/whats-on
Unexpected Art Surprise Sjomanskyrkan shone in the winter darkness/
Kristian Ekenberg/ 13 Feb 2022/ Gefle Dagblad
An Example of Something Inside Out,/Wasser, F/ Visual Artists’ News Sheet/ p 18/ Jan -Feb 2022 Edition
https://visualartists.ie/members-area/the-visual-artists-news-sheet-current-edition-members-only/
https://www.anniemacmanus.com/articles
https://issuu.com/aldobrantifosco-fornio/docs/cm_60pp_composite
http://www.artsandhealth.ie/2019/05/05/living-portraits-by-rachel-macmanus/
https://www.oca.ac.uk/weareoca/fine-art/reflecting-on-duodecimal