Peace up for discussion at Hugh Lane Gallery event

Perspectives on Peace is co-hosted by Concern Worldwide and Hugh Lane Gallery.  The panel will feature Maguire alongside peace activist, academic and former politician Monica McWilliams, Dr Jude Lal Fernando, professor and Director of the Centre for Post-Conflict Justice at Trinity College Dublin, and Dominic MacSorley former Concern CEO and its current Humanitarian ambassador.

“In this exhibition the paintings show the Mexican city of Juarez - the capital of murder, man and women: the Mediterranean, a handy depositary for unwanted people just like the Sarona Desert, Arizona.  Syria and South Sudan visited by war while it changes its address. It all points to a world embedded in violence. The artist’s job is simple - to help make it visible,” said Mr Maguire.

The panel discussion will examine women’s role in driving peace across the globe, as observed by Maguire and McWilliams in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, among other places, and discuss Ireland’s role on the global stage in promoting peace.  It will also examine the essential and often under-appreciated part artists and art play in campaigning for peace. 

“The role art and artists played throughout the peace process in Northern Ireland can sometimes be overlooked. Art was essential in driving the Good Friday Agreement over the line, artists and writers helped us understand and see what a future without conflict could mean to our lives,” said Ms McWilliams.

“La Grande Illusion” spans almost two decades of Maguire’s work (2007 – 2024) and features 30 paintings from projects Maguire undertook in Juárez, Mexico, the Mediterranean, Aleppo, South Sudan, the Amazon, Arizona and Brazil. It aims to reveal how the artist represents the fragility of human rights and how he has persistently responded to societal injustices and their legacies.

In 2018, Maguire travelled with Concern to South Sudan and to Benitu refugee camp to witness first-hand the impact of conflict and displacement on affected communities. At that time South Sudan, the world’s newest country, was in the midst of a civil war and the camp was host to 120,000 people who had fled the violence. 

The visit inspired his 2018 exhibition 'HUMANITY Site Unseen', and a painting from that trip features in the current exhibition at Hugh Lane.

Perspectives on Peace takes place at the Hugh Lane Gallery from 4:45 to 8pm on Thursday 27th February. Admission is free but booking is advised. 

‘La Grande Illusion’ runs until 18th May.

For further information contact Eilis Staunton, Media Relations Officer, Concern Worldwide, at eilis.staunton@concern.net or +353 85 872 0720.