Belfast Exposed

Exhibitions

3rd Aug - 16th Sep

Belfast Exposed Presents: Portrait of Belfast

BELFAST EXPOSED PRESENTS: PORTRAIT OF BELFASTTo accompany Portrait of Humanity Vol. 5, Belfast Exposed is inviting Northe...

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3rd Aug - 16th Sep

Portrait of Humanity Vol. 5

In partnership with the British Journal of PhotographyBelfast Exposed is delighted to be hosting the British Journal of P...

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Community

21st May - 22nd May

Showing the faces of dementia with Alzheimer’s NI

Ahead of the Alzheimer’s Society Annual Conference 2019 (ASAC19), Belfast Exposed was commissioned by Alzheimer’s NI to w...

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4th May - 20th May

Coronation Generation 2023

Bringing together young people from across communities for Coronation GenerationIn April 2023, Belfast Exposed worked wit...

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The Hopeless End of a Great Dream

Gallery 1

26th May 2016 to 23rd Jul 2016

About The Exhibition

Belfast Exposed is pleased to present The Hopeless End of a Great Dream, a major new film commission by Declan Clarke. This 16mm feature length film was co-commisioned by Temple Bar Gallery + Studios, Centre Culturel Irlandais Paris and Trinity Creative.

Using Trinity College Dublin as a backdrop, the film takes a number of forgotten episodes in Irish history as its starting point. Clarke grounds these episodes in the political present, so that they function as commentaries on the causes, effects, and ongoing ramifications of the current political climate. Visually and thematically referencing the tropes of post war European cinema, Clarke blurs real and fictional stories to create a complex palimpsest of narrative development, compelling characters and mysterious events.

The Artists

Declan Clarke

Artist Biography

Declan Clarke (b.1974) studied at the National College of Art and Design, Dublin, and Chelsea College of Arts, London. Recent solo exhibitions include: Torrence Art Museum, Los Angeles; Farbvision, Berlin, Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris, all forthcoming in 2016; The Hopeless End of Great Dream, Temple Bar Gallery & Studios, ongoing; Geist Trilogie, Tromsø Kunstforening, Norway, 2016; Wreckage in May, Dublin City Gallery the Hugh Lane, 2015; Group Portrait with Explosives, Mother's Tankstation, Dublin, 2014. In 2015, Clarke's film Group Portrait with Explosives won the Jury Prize at the 31st Biennale of Graphic Arts, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Events

Artist Talk

Friday 27 May | 2pm | Belfast Exposed

Free Admission
Artist Screening Programme in partnership with Belfast Film Festival

Saturday 28th May, 11th June, 2nd July | 2pm | Belfast Exposed

Free Admission
Film Masterclass in partnership with Visual Artists Ireland

Saturday 23 July | 11am - 4pm | Belfast Exposed

Free Admission
In Conversation + Screening at QFT

Saturday 23 July | 6.30pm | Belfast Exposed

Free Admission

Acknowledgements

This exhibition was made possible by the generous support of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Arts Council Ireland, Belfast City Council, Trinity Creative. Thanks to our exhibition partners Temple Bar Gallery + Studios, Centre Culturel Irlandais Paris and Trinity Creative and to our events partners Visual Artists Ireland, Belfast Film Festival and Queen's Film Theatre.