Simon to share details about his latest project

Teesside University lecturer and renowned international artist Simon Mckeown will unveil details about his latest project, Cork Ignite, at a special event in December.

Simon, a Reader in Post Production and Animation in the University’s School of Computing, will be in conversation with leading UK and Irish arts practitioners at Trace Elements.

The event takes place on 1 December in Liverpool, from 4.00pm to 6.00pm, as part of the Dadafest International Festival and will see Simon reveal details about Cork Ignite.

Cork Ignite is a large scale art commission planned for Cork, Ireland in September 2015. Trace Elements will include a panel discussion on how Cork Ignite is funded by Ignite, an unique partnership in Ireland representing the largest ever investment in Ireland’s arts and disability sector and inspired by the success and impact of Unlimited 2012. The panel discussion will also focus on the context of collaborative practice involving artists working together with communities or a community of interest in some way.

The panel for Trace Elements are Mary McCarthy, Director of the National Sculpture Factory and Chair of Culture Ireland, Kath Gorman, Independent Producer and Cork Ignite Project Manager, Pádraig Naughton, Director of Arts & Disability Ireland, Dr Paul Darke, Academic, writer and cultural critic and Simon Mckeown.

Simon has over 25 years of professional creative experience, and was awarded his own prestigious Cultural Olympiad/London 2012 Festival commission, which represented a watershed moment for contemporary disability art.

For his latest project Simon has been commissioned by the National Sculpture Factory and Create Ireland to develop a new large scale outdoors arts commission, ‘Cork Ignite’. 'Cork Ignite' will use a mix of digital technology and disability ethos and culture, featuring a significant collaborative element with artists in Cork and will take place in Cork city in September 2015.

The Trace Elements In Conversation event is in association with Create Ireland, DaDaFest, FACT and the National Sculpture Factory (Ireland). Trace Elements is supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England. Cork Ignite is commissioned by Cork City Council as part of Ignite. Ignite is managed by a unique partnership involving the Arts Council, Arts & Disability Ireland (ADI), Cork City Council, Galway City and County Councils, and Mayo County Council.

---