Exhibitions

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Current
Irish Modernisms
Exhibition
Irish Modernisms
29 May 21—25 Sep 21
Past
Creating Dangerously
Exhibition
Alberta Whittle
Creating Dangerously
17 May 21—23 May 21
Past
URGENCIES (2021)
Exhibition
URGENCIES (2021)
30 Mar 21—22 May 21

Public Programmes

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Portraitofy2
Public Programme
Portrait of Y
Portrait of Y is the second of a series of ten window text commissions by artists, writers, and designers created during...
'Irish Modernisms' Gallery 1 shot of 'Modern Convenience' (2021) by Ben Weir and 'Death of the Banshee' (2021) by Phillip McCrilly
Public Programme
Phillip McCrilly
Culture Night 2021: Screen-print your own ephemera
17 Sep 21
For Culture Night 2021, CCA is hosting an interactive screen-printing workshop for people of all ages, working in partne...
Rob Palmer, archival image
Public Programme
Liv Preston
CCA Introducing: Liv Preston
17 Sep 21—18 Sep 21
On Friday 17 September 2021 from 10am, follow artist Liv Preston as she takes over our Instagram and Twitter pages to sh...
Public Programme
Quieter Coastal
Public Programme
I WAS NEVER LOST
Public Programme
CCA Introducing: Craig Donald
Public Programme
CCA Edition: WHY WERE WE ECSTATIC

Latest News

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'Irish Modernisms' Gallery 2 shot of 'Massives' by Rachael Campbell-Palmer (2021)
Article
'Irish Modernisms' extended by one week
Our group show Irish Modernisms is being extended for one week, and will now close on Saturday 25 September 2021. From ...
Posted 09 Sep
'Irish Modernisms' Gallery 1 shot of 'Modern Convenience' (2021) by Ben Weir
Article
Take a 'Modern Convenience' Ben Weir brick home
As our group show Irish Modernisms comes to a close on Saturday 25 September 2021, we will be dismantling Ben Weir's Mod...
Posted 09 Sep
Abercorn James Ashe
Article
CCA Editions by James Ashe for 'Irish Modernisms' for sale
James Ashe has created a new limited screen print series as the latest CCA Edition! The artworks are part of the Irish M...
Posted 08 Sep
Hole
Article
Join the waitlist for 'How to write a door and walk through'
Our November–December 2021 writing workshop series How to write a door and walk through hosted by CCA Research Associate...
Posted 06 Sep

Shop

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New
'LIES' guest publication – Critical Bastards magazine 'LIES' guest publication – Critical Bastards magazine
£7.50
New
'Suppose A Collapse' guest publication – Lucie McLaughlin 'Suppose A Collapse' guest publication – Lucie McLaughlin
£12.00
Writing workshop series: 'How to write a door and walk through' with Frances Whorrall-Campbell Writing workshop series: 'How to write a door and walk through' with Frances Whorrall-Campbell
£25.00
CCA Edition: 'WHY WERE WE ECSTATIC' pencil by Frances Whorrall-Campbell CCA Edition: 'WHY WERE WE ECSTATIC' pencil by Frances Whorrall-Campbell
£3.00

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SPELEOlOGIST Similar to decent this publication was well known for its striking imagery. The content had a scientific focus and ran a frequent photography competition that generated the unusual style of cave photography you can see here. Similarly these began as small format publications and eventually expanded to full size, however sadly the magazine did not survive as DESCENT did. #ccaintroducing #livpreston MINES The opposite of the natural cave, abandoned mines are frequent areas of interests for cavers. Many mines originate or connect to natural caves and whilst they provide a view of incredible subterranean architecture the dangers are prevalent and not to be underestimated. The photographs here are images from the National Coal Board and originally were used to keep track of the condition of the faces. I came across them in a mixture of surveys and maps, most likely being used by cavers to plot a new route underground. #ccaintroducing #livpreston NORTHERN CAVES The northern caves guide series catalogues and provides descriptions of caving locations in the north of England. Similar to DESCENT the series is known for its iconic cover design. With each re-issue the list is updated and expanded with new information and discoveries, in theory the potential of the book is infinite as all these spaces continue to be explored. Designed to be carried the books are pocket sized and newer editions feature waterproof covers. #ccaintroducing #livpreston WHAT’S DOWN THERE Taking thousands of years to form you will see an array of formations in caves, mostly calcite based they take strange textures and shapes reflecting the conditions of the cave. Photographing the underground spaces isn’t easy especially in the era of film however British Caves and Potholes is a good example of how resourceful and stubborn cavers can be and shows some incredible images. You will also find these images often on souvenir postcards colourised to illuminate the landscapes. Whilst the majority of my archive is publications I was lucky to find a photo album from 1935 that documented a group of friends and the strand formations they came across. #ccaintroducing #livpreston CAVE DIVERS Cave diving is highly disorientating but often necessary action to explore the hardest difficulty of cave. Requiring experience and a serious amount of gear to engage in cave divers often resemble characters from science fiction with multiple torches and breathing apparatus required for long dives. Often in order not to get lost in the pitch black water once a sump has been navigated covers will run a steel wire so they have something to orientate themselves. However diving is one of the leading fatalities of the sport. However despite its dangers it rewards with incredible discoveries, notably by Rob Palmer (R.I.P) the discovery of multiple underwater Arawak skeletons. Used by WARMBAC for their advert this image is a prime example of cavers dark sense of humour. #livpreston #ccaintroducing CAVING GUIDES/D&D There are numerous elements shared between caving guides and Dungeons & Dragons zines, both can be produced with low production cost and at home often passed between friends and photocopied at the library. On the first slide are a collection of guides made by various UK caving clubs. Following that is a comparison of extracts from caving guide NORTHERN CAVES VOL 1. and FANTASIE SCENARIOS (1979) a dungeons and dragons fan zine. You’ll notice also that the language between these fantastical spaces is very similar and the line between reality and fantasy bleeds regularly. Both have factual but descriptively viscous descriptions of how to move forward and succeed/escape and these caves are often named after the adventures of those who discovered them (more on this later). They are also graded for difficulty and require particular equipment and armours to traverse. Often accompanied by detailed hand drawn maps, players and covers survey these spaces and give structure to spaces which in reality are quite abstract to comprehend. Cave surveying itself is also very interesting to read about and although 3D mapping has progressed the methods remain much the same. Image Descriptions: A selection of handmade caving guides, all quite lo-fi in production. Description from FANTASIE SCENARIOS (1979) of a fictional dungeon. Description from Northern Caves Volume One (Wharfedale and Nidderdale) (1979) of UNCLAIMED CAVE. A cave survey of Odin mine. A fictional map of gargoyle chasm from D&D zine FANTASIE SCENARIOS (1979). TROLL caving advert of a caver abseiling into the dark. #ccaintroducing #livpreston DESCENT MAGAZINE The majority of my personal archive is made up by DESCENT magazine, a British caving magazine that has been running since the late 60’s. Mostly focusing on the antics of cavers in the UK it details news from expeditions, updates on caving equipment and techniques, a wealth of images from the subterranean all mixed in with a familiar UK sense of humour. Starting it’s life as a small format publication often with drawings standing in for photographs the magazine developed into a a4 full colour format. The covers are often striking, reminiscent of horror or fantasy imagery and have been a staple of their design throughout it’s production. From left to right you can see the progression of the covers from the 70’s to the early 2000’s. In the early years DESCENT could be mistaken for any of the numerous Dungeons & Dragons zines being produced just a few years later. Similarly this is a publication that relies heavily on community contributions and passion, their iconic covers in years to come all submissions from readers and contributors. Image description: A chronological selection of DESCENT magazine covers showing the progression of the publication covers from the 70’s to the late 90’s. #ccaintroducing #livpreston Today I’m going to be sharing a selection of information and images from my personal archive of caving publications, also a part of the work B.P.C pictured here! Part of a series of sculptures, B.P.C is a pelican case filled with 547 assorted publications and guides that acts as a functional weight to support a 12m solid lead chain #ccaintroducing #livpreston 🪨🔍🦴 Friday 17 September 2021, from 10am CCA Introducing: Liv Preston Follow artist Liv Preston as she takes over our Instagram and Twitter pages to share her work and research for CCA Introducing 2021. We are @CCADLD on all platforms. The recommendation to invite Liv to participate in CCA Introducing came from artist Ryan Gander, who was part of CCA Derry~Londonderry's 'Make every show like it’s your last' 2014 solo exhibition. Born in Keighley (1993) and growing up in Bradford, West Yorkshire the material language and attitudes of this landscape has heavily influenced Liv's practice. Collections of objects/spaces are identified and mined, their specificity and contexts employed as material. Liv will be sharing some of the archival images from her research/personal collection of publications about subterranean exploration. These primarily are from a collection of British caving/potholing journals and guides into exploring cave systems. For more on Liv and CCA Introducing, click the link in our bio. #ccaintroducing 🗃🗃🗃 Culture Night 2021 at CCA: Screen-print your own ephemera Friday 17 September 2021, 5pm–8pm For Culture Night 2021, CCA is hosting an interactive screen-printing workshop for people of all ages, working in partnership with Derry Print Workshop. ‘Irish Modernisms’ artist Phillip McCrilly has selected a series of images from his archive. These images, including typography, advertising, and photography become silkscreens, giving you the opportunity to screen-print your own ephemera. There is no need to book; just stop by and visit the gallery at 10–12 Artillery Street then to join in. #culturenight2021 🇱🇹 OPEN CALL: ‘DeMo’ Reciprocal Residency opportunity 🇱🇹 Deadline: Thursday 14 October 2021 Following its pilot in 2020, CCA and Kaunas Artists House are preparing the second of their ongoing series of Reciprocal Residency Programme DeMo (Decoding Modernity). These residencies have an aim to develop an experimental artistic framework for the critique of progress which is practically a synonym of modernity that is often perceived in a very limited West-centric manner. The very definition of ‘emerging’ is explained by the Cambridge dictionary in terms of centres of power; non-central places in relation to finance/political/cultural centres are often defined as emerging in both fields of business and the arts. For the open call the artists are invited to relate and reflect on the meaning of emerging. Can you emerge from nothing? Can emerging be an eternal state of affairs? We are seeking applications from emerging artists based in or from Northern Ireland and Lithuania. For further information and how to apply, click the link in our bio for our Opportunities page. #ni #lithuania #artist #exchange #residency #artistresidency 💭 OPEN CALL: CCA Research Associates 2022 💭 Deadline: Friday 1 October, midnight In 2019–22 CCA is developing its support of research practice through establishing a series of Associate Researchers. CCA will support researchers by providing access to our archives and networks, with the potential to develop longer-term projects with CCA and will feature on our Research page. In return, Research Associates will present their practice at CCA, bringing new audiences to their work as well as providing the opportunity to meet with the other CCA Research Associates. This call is for the third cohort of around 5 Research Associates (with at least 2/5 from NI). Following our pilot years the term for Research Associates will be two years and there will be opportunity to interact with previous and future cohorts. For more details on this open call and how to apply, find our Opportunities page by clicking the link in our bio. #ni #research #researchassociate #artist #opportunity